Ten Black Roses
by DancerInTheDark101
Summary: Slight AU. Kai always seems to show up covered in bruises. Tala and his friends attempt to uncover the truth. FINALLY COMPLETE!
1. Life Is Like A Boat In The Bottle

Hey there everyone! First off, I am extremely sorry for not updating IFOF in like, forever. Writer's block again. Anyways, this is my new fic, inspired by a new song by The Rasmus by the same name – Ten Black Roses.

Here's a bit about it: There will be 25 chapters, including a Prologue and Epilogue. The chapters will be short, about 1-2 thousand words each. I will try to update as quick as possible and if I can, every few days. I already have the first chapter written as well.

Please give it a go! Would love to hear from you all XD

(PS. Sorry for the crappy formatting of the chapter. The stupid document editor kept screwing everything up!)

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

_Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does is explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? (Abuse, dark themes)_

**Prologue: Life Is Like A Boat In The Bottle**

The hot red of pain slashed through his mind and body as the knife came crashing down again and again on his unprotected flesh. He screamed, not aloud because that would signal weakness, but in the depths of his sub-consciousness where nothing could hurt him.

He screwed his eyes shut as the waves of pain assaulted his battered and bruised body, the slashes cross-crossing over each other like an intricate web of lies and betrayal. All he wished was to curl up in a tight ball to stop the slashes from reaching his flesh and cry. It was all becoming too much to handle. There was only so much one person could bear before it overwhelmed them and their world came crashing down around them.

Another slash, another ounce of awareness gone. Another slash. More slashes followed, until he was unable to feel the pain any more. He lay on the floor, bloodied, with crystalline tear trails snaking their way down his pale face. He stared into the air in front of him, vision blurry and unseeing.

He didn't care anymore. There was too much pain in his life and not enough love. From every day since the accident, his world had slowly been falling apart. He was waiting for the day when everything gave in and shattered. Then, and only then, would he have his peace.

A painful kick landed on his left side and he continued to lie there. There was not even a flinch. He knew the kick must have been painful, every kick was. Yet, he couldn't feel the kick properly. All that reached his senses was a mild twinge in his left ribs, nothing else. Was that a bad thing?

"Worthless piece of scum," spoke the cold, hard voice of his abuser. The man never did have any feelings. How could he when he did this almost every day? "You should have died alongside your worthless parents."

Now, that stung. His parents hadn't been worthless. His mother – from what he remembered – was one of the warmest, most lovely people in the world. And his father had been a strong, strict, but kind man who protected his family till his death.

If anyone was worthless, it was him. He hadn't been prepared for the accident. He hadn't stopped it from happening. He couldn't stop was what happening now. Worthless. That was the one word he would describe himself with.

A sudden slapping sound reached his ears and he felt his head snap to the side, a slight burning spreading over his cheek. Had he just slapped him?

"Get up!" the man standing above him screamed, spit flying from his mouth and landing just below his right eye. Paying the spit no attention, he blinked sluggishly and looked up at him.

Vision blurry, he blinked again and let the scene in front of him sink in as his eyes adjusted. As he was staring upwards, more than slightly dazed, the pain returned full force. Suddenly, he wished for the cold numbness to return so that he didn't have to feel the white-hot waves of pain rushing through his body and seemingly setting it on fire.

Gasping for breath, he bolted upright as a large hand came crashing down to connect with his cheek again. The stinging increased tenfold and he bit back a cry. How had it come to this? Why was he the one who had endured so much pain?

Stumbling to his feet, he swayed slightly, but managed to keep himself upright by placing a pale and bloody hand on the wall beside him. He gazed ahead and was met with a pair of cold, unforgiving grey eyes, malice burning in their depths.

That was it. He wasn't going to give in any more. There was only so much he could do to him and he was pretty sure that the limit had been reached long ago. He was going to stand up for who he was, for what he believed in. He wasn't going to be held down and abused by the man any longer. He was his own person.

Glaring at said man, he took a tentative step forward, wincing as his sprained ankle took most of his weight on it. Ignoring the hard look that was sent his way, he slowly limped past his abuser and towards the stairs.

He stopped abruptly as the sound of heavy footsteps followed him. What did he want now? Hadn't he had his fun for the night?

"Clean yourself up. I want you down for dinner in half an hour." The tone was formal, sharp – like he hadn't just bloodied and bruised him for the past two hours. To the man, it was obviously something akin to a business meeting; something he must attend to.

Trying not to aggravate the head wound too much, he nodded and hid another wince as a painful headache pounded to make it known. If he were lucky, one of the maids would help him clean his wounds and be ready in time for dinner. If he weren't…well, then he probably wouldn't be going to school the next day.

Sighing heavily, he falteringly made his way up the stairs and to his bedroom, which was situated on the third floor. Luckily, one of the maids was waiting outside his door with a bundle of bandages, a needle and thread and antiseptic, ready to treat the wounds.

Frowning, he limped over to the maid. He didn't know why the beating had been so bad before. He hadn't disobeyed the man in the past few weeks. Maybe he was just letting off steam? He had known that to happen a few times in the past years.

Flashing the maid a small, but sad smile, he unlocked his door and stumbled in, his energy reserves almost gone. As he was ushered into the en suite, he thought about the one friend that had always been with him during the beatings.

She had stayed with him, even when he had treated her like shit. But _he_ had forbidden him from seeing her and he missed her warmth that embraced him like his long-dead mother.

"Master?" The maid's voice shook him out of his thoughts and he turned to see her standing there with a sleek, mobile phone in her hand. Sighing, he reached out with his clean hand and placed the small phone next to his ear.

"Hello?" he spoke, trying to hide the roughness from his voice. Whoever it was, they didn't need to know what was going on behind the doors of the mansion.

"Kai? You okay?" Of course, the one person who would see straight through his acting had to be the one to ring.

Closing his eyes, Kai winced as the maid threaded the stitching needle through a cut on his arm. "Yeah, Tala. No, Grandfather's not home. Nothing's happened. I'm fine…"

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 1: Try To Sail, You Can't With No Air**

The sun rose quickly above the hills to greet the students of Bakuten High with its blazing glory. Birds chirped in their homes in the trees, greeting them as they walked into the large school for the first day of the new term.

One group of students stood beside the front entrance, laughing and greeting each other with high-fives and smiles.

Kai eyed the group of people warily from his place in the shadows of nearby trees. He wasn't sure whether or not to greet them or just skip out on the day altogether. He had been made to go overboard with the makeup to hide the bruising and he was extremely hot, dressed in a black, long-sleeved t-shirt and dark, baggy jeans. Black sunglasses covered his crimson eyes, masking the dark circles around his eyes and one particularly nasty bruise that the makeup hadn't wanted to cover.

Sighing, the bluenette made up his mind and escaped the darkness of the tree's shadows. He ambled over to the group, hoping that he was hiding his discomfort well enough. He was a few metres from the front entrance, when a navy-haired teen caught sight of him and yelled out, waving.

"Kai! Hay! Over here!" the teen called Tyson called enthusiastically.

Kai rolled his eyes behind the glasses and looked at the group. It looked like that he was last one to arrive. His gaze rested on a familiar redhead and he flinched slightly behind the dark sunglasses as Tala's features morphed into a frowning glare.

_Oh shit. _

* * *

**PLEASE READ: Below is an extract from the story I am currently writing. It is a vampire novel :) If you like what you read here, send me a PM or email and I will gladly send you what I have written so far. I really want feedback on it! Thank you. Hope you enjoy.**

**Oh and by the way: the main character's name is Szethyn.**

As he gazed into the mirror, he realised how much he looked like his long-dead father. They had the same eyes, the same high cheekbones and the same petulant pout that drove a number of the female population insane.

Mind floating to the past, he thought about his life before his rebirth.

He had been born in 1682 in what was now called San Francisco. His village had been a relatively small one, but the villagers had been very close and watched each others' backs at all times. Growing up had been a privilege, as many of the boys his age had been forced to join the military and fight pointless wars. Many of his friends had left one day and had returned only days later – in a wooden box called a coffin.

It had been a cold night in March when they had come. He had only recently had his eighteenth birthday, the day when he was recognised as a man.

They came at night, under the blanket of darkness to disguise their attack. He could clearly remember the screams from the dying women and children, being torn apart by their loved ones. They had turned most of the village men that night, turning them into cold blooded, cold hearted killers.

He had been one of them.

And he had never looked back since.

Killing his family had been easy…

* * *

**Please let me know what you think!**

**-Dancer-**

* * *


	2. Try To Sail, You Can't With No Air

Hay there! OMG thank you for all the wonderful reviews! I checked my emails 12 hours after I posted and I already had SEVEN reviews waiting for me! Thank you! Also, thanks to all of those who put this story on their faves (3) and alerts (9)!

A little but of input from readers: I am stuck whether or not to include beyblading. From what I have written now, I can still stick in beyblading or I can leave it out. Please tell me what you want! Thanks so much :)

* * *

Review replies:

the Light Shadow – first reviewer! Thanks so much for the review. You find out a bit more about why Kai is hiding it in this chapter. Hope this update was soon enough!

Walsha – thanks! Hope you enjoy this chapter too.

FlamingIce94 – thank you! Hope you enjoy the other chapters as much. This chapter doesn't have much blood in it, but I'm planning to alternate chapters with that. Hope you like :)

d1bontemp – hay! Thanks so much! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

Cyborgshi – thanks! I've recently had quite a bad week and all I wanted to do was write blood and angsty material, so viola! Ten Black Roses is born lol. Hope you like the chapter.

Destiny Kitty – thanks for the long review! The fic is going to be 25 chapters, but I've got a lot planned for those chapters :) Also, I'm planning a sequel too. Hope you enjoy every chapter and I look forward to hearing from you again! Enjoy XD

Shininglake – hehe, I LOVE evil! Lol. Thanks for the review, I hope you enjoy the chapter :)

pheonix80 – hello again! Lol, I love Kai torture too! (We definitely sound weird, but weird is GOOD hehehe). Thanks for the review. Hope you like the chapter.

Yuliya – did I update fast enough?? XD Hehe, I'm planning on updating every day or every second day :) Glad you liked it! Hope you enjoy this chapter.

Thank you so much for the NINE reviews! I'm so stoked! And thanks to all that read! I've had almost 100 hits already!

On with the chapter!

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101

* * *

_**

_Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does is explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes_

**Chapter 1: Try To Sail, You Can't With No Air**

The sun rose quickly above the hills to greet the students of Bakuten High with its blazing glory. Birds chirped in their homes in the trees, greeting them as they walked into the large school for the first day of the new term.

One group of students stood beside the front entrance, laughing and greeting each other with high-fives and smiles.

Kai eyed the group of people warily from his place in the shadows of nearby trees. He wasn't sure whether or not to greet them or just skip out on the day altogether. He had been made to go overboard with the makeup to hide the bruising and he was extremely hot, dressed in a black, long-sleeved t-shirt and dark, baggy jeans. Black sunglasses covered his crimson eyes, masking the dark circles around his eyes and one particularly nasty bruise that the makeup hadn't wanted to cover.

Sighing, the bluenette made up his mind and escaped the darkness of the tree's shadows. He ambled over to the group, hoping that he was hiding his discomfort well enough. He was a few metres from the front entrance, when a navy-haired teen caught sight of him and yelled out, waving.

"Kai! Hay! Over here!" the teen called Tyson called enthusiastically.

Kai rolled his eyes behind the glasses and looked at the group. It looked like that he was last one to arrive. His gaze rested on a familiar redhead and he flinched slightly behind the dark sunglasses as Tala's features morphed into a frowning glare.

_Oh shit._

He had suspected that the redhead was starting to think that something wasn't right, but Kai still wasn't sure as to how much Tala knew. Hopefully, the teen would give up and leave everything as it was. He didn't want anyone to know what was going on with his grandfather and their _meetings_.

Something told him that it was wrong for his grandfather to hit him, yet, Voltaire had told him countless times that it was the kind of punishment he deserved for killing his parents. From everything he had learnt in school about abuse, all they ever said to do was to tell someone.

That didn't tell you much. What if you told someone and they thought you were just lying and laughed? No one believes people like that, that's what his grandfather had said.

Shaking himself out of his darkening thoughts, Kai ambled over to where the group was standing. Taking a quick glance to the large clock that hung off the school's office building, he saw that it was five minutes to nine. They had five minutes until the beginning-of-term assembly began.

"Hey guys." His tone was emotionless as ever and Kai let his gaze flicker over to Tala and he winced inwardly as the other Russian's frown deepened.

"You okay?" came the typical response from said Russian. It was only then that Kai realised that the reason Tala was so suspicious was because of last night's phone call. He winced.

**The night before…**

Closing his eyes, Kai winced as the maid threaded the stitching needle through a cut on his arm. "Yeah, Tala. No, Grandfather's not home. Nothing's happened. I'm fine…"

"You see, though Kai. I don't believe you one bit. Something's going on. I don't know how serious or bad it is, or even if it is bad, but you're not telling us something. And trust me, we're going to find out sooner or later."

Kai opened his mouth wordlessly. Shit, they were beginning to suspect. That was not good. "Tala," he growled. They couldn't know. "There's nothing going on. Everything is just how it always has been. And as for Voltaire, you know that he's away at the moment. He's not due back for another two weeks."

It was true. Voltaire wasn't due back from his business trip for another two weeks. Well, that's what he still told everyone when his grandfather came back three weeks early. Voltaire had been back for a week now and for some reason, the beatings were worse than ever.

"Kai…" Tala's voice spoke through the small speaker. Kai could detect a small amount of worry in the normally stoic teen and swore under his breath.

"Look, Tala," he interrupted. "If anything was going on, I'd tell you. And as I haven't told you anything, then obviously nothing is happening!" Kai was angry. Why the hell couldn't they leave him alone? Everyone has secrets and they wouldn't be called secrets if they were to be told to everyone.

To stop himself from blurting out anything else, Kai quickly lifted the cellphone from his ear and jabbed at the 'end call' button. The soothing monotonous beep filled the room and Kai sighed. His secret was safe, for now.

**Present time…**

Before he could respond with an angry retort, a shrill bell rang out throughout the school, signalling the beginning of the school day and term. Sighing in relief, Kai followed the group of teens towards the large gymnasium that the assemblies were held in.

Staring ahead, he took a good look at each of his supposed 'friends.'

First off there was Tyson. The navy-haired teen was from Japan and his favourite thing to do was eat, talk about how great he was, and complain…a lot. Even though Tyson's constant chatter often got on his nerves, it also helped drown out the thoughts of pain, darkness and his home life.

Beside Tyson there was a blonde teen that looked to be younger than the rest of the group. Kai knew that Max was the same as Tyson and that he only looked younger. The American teen's face still held some of his baby fat and his glowing blue eyes made him seem like a young child. Max was the hyper one of the group. He was always on a constant sugar high and his best friend happened to be Tyson.

A few feet behind those two was a tall, tanned boy with long, black hair that was braided and hung halfway down his back. Rei Kon was from China and he was a silent, calm person who constantly observed the world around him. Kai didn't like him one bit. Rei was too observant and always poking his nose into other people's business. Plus, his girlfriend; the infuriating pink-loving Mariah was a pain in the ass.

Kai let his crimson gaze land on the form of who he called his best friend. The person who had gained the prestigious title of Kai Hiwatari's Best Friend was none other than fellow Russian; Tala Ivanov. The redhead had been subjected to a bad past, just like he had and they seemed to know what each other had gone through.

The blue-haired teen had no idea why he hid the continuous abuse from Tala. He had tried a few times to tell the boy, but every time he found that his mouth wouldn't form the words.

Bryan Kuznetsov was the lilac-haired teen walking beside Tala, talking quietly. Kai had a lot of respect for that Russian. Bryan had witnessed the murder of his mother, father and his twin older brother and sister. And if that wasn't enough, Bryan had found out a few years before that he had cancer and was slowly dying. The chemotherapy hadn't helped at all and according to doctors, he had less than a year to live.

Yet, after all that, Bryan was still going. He knew he was going to die, but he didn't let it slow him down. Kai wished that he had that kind of resolve. If he could just for once stand up to his grandfather then maybe, just maybe, the beatings would stop. But that was all just a fantasy he had come up with. It would never happen.

There were a few more people walking with the group. A pale-blonde Spaniard was smiling at anyone who passed and was waving to anyone. Kai knew the boy as Miguel and he also knew that the teen had a not-so-secret crush on him. It was sweet, since Miguel was two years younger, but he didn't feel that way towards him.

The last person in the group was another redhead, except his hair tended to colour slightly more towards orange. The tall teen was called Brooklyn and he was a complete nature freak. He was always seen at the back of the school admiring the bird's nests and other animal life. It was weird though, because as weird as he was, Brooklyn never had been teased for it. Kai knew the reasoning for it and it wasn't something he wanted to experience again.

"Kai?"

Shaking his head slightly to rid the thoughts from his mind, Kai looked up at the person who had called him. He was surprised to find that they were already at the gymnasium and that almost everyone was seated. How long had he been standing there like a spaced-out freak?

"Yeah, I'm coming," he said, glowering. Following the group into the gym, Kai took his seat and watched in silence as the principal appeared on stage and started the inevitable beginning-of-term speech.

"Good morning school!" Bruce Granger spoke, his eyes flashing quickly and discreetly to his son, Tyson. "First of all, welcome to the new school term. I hope that this term will be as pleasuring and enjoyable as the last two."

A pause, then Mr. Granger motioned to someone standing to the side of the stage. "Now, I would like to introduce you to the new school doctor since Ms. Tate is away on maternity leave. Everyone, please welcome Mr. Boris Balkov."

Kai froze as he stared at the painfully familiar purple hair and cold green eyes of Boris Balkov; the man who had run Balkov Abbey…

His blood ran cold when Boris' gaze wandered across the gathered students and honed in on him. The small smirk that graced the doctor's lips unnerved him and Kai swallowed.

What the hell was Boris doing at his school?

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 2: Day By Day It Only Gets Harder**

After three quarters of an hour, the assembly was finally over and Kai found that he couldn't wait to get out of the gymnasium. He caught Tala's eye and they both shared a look. Both of them had met Boris in their early years and it was very hard to forget a man like him. Kai still didn't know what Boris had done to Tala, as it was the one thing Tala wouldn't talk about, ever.

"Wow! What a creepy doctor!" blurted Tyson and Kai had to let a small smile appear on his lips. Trust Tyson to be the ice breaker. And when Tyson held a clenched fist to his heart and spoke in a true, proud tone, Kai had to bite back a laugh.

"I solemnly swear that I am not going to piss off anyone this term and I will not punch, kick, scream at or bite any of my fellow students. This is the promise of I, Tyson Granger!"

"I'm going to hold that promise to you, son." From behind the navy-haired teen stood a tall, brunette. Kai stared at the principal with barely contained laughter. Oh, Tyson was in for it now.

Rolling his eyes, Kai went to turn and walk to his locker when a painful twinge rocketed up his leg. Crimson orbs widening fractionally, Kai put a bandaged hand out in front of himself to protect his battered body from his hitting the ground hard. Unfortunately, his sprained wrist took the full force and gave way. Moments later he found himself sprawled on the ground, head pounding and stars circling in front of his vision.

­**-Dancer-**


	3. Day By Day It Only Gets Harder

HOLY SHIT! OMG thank you so much! 21 reviews! I can't believe how well this fic is doing! I seriously thought that I would get like, 4 maybe 5 reviews for chapter 1 and I got 9! And I've got 12 for chapter 2! Thanks so much XD

Review replies…

aquaanime – thanks for adding to alerts and faves! Also, thank you for reviewing :) I'm glad you liked it. Hope you like this chapter too.

Ugawa – hehe, don't worry, I'm going to be continuing XD Thanks for the review! Enjoy chapter 2.

StarShinobi – hehe, I try! (to be evil that is) Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy.

the Light Shadow – thanks! Yeah bout Bryan having cancer: he also has cancer in my other fic, Inner Fury of Fire lol. Don't ask me why I have this obsession with killing off Bryan. I don't know whether or not he will die in this one though. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Lockita – I have written more! XD Thanks for all your kind words! :) Hope you enjoy this chapter and I hope that it is as well written as the other two.

p power – I got capitals! LOL. Hope I updated fast enough :P Enjoy.

Cyborgshi – hehe, I had to add Boris in somewhere :) He plays a big part in the next few chapters. But I can't promise that Kai will be okay………o.o –hides behind large, brick wall- Hope you enjoy the chapter!

pheonix80 – OMG I _cannot_ ever even picture Voltaire as an angel!! What have I created with Boris being a doctor? Uh oh, Kai's gonna be in some trouble! Thanks for the review, hope you enjoy.

FlamingIce94 – thanks! I decided that I couldn't have all of the characters, so I cut out a few only leaving my faves :) Hope you enjoy the chapter!

Rapunzelle – lookie! You can read the next chapter quickly! I still can't believe that I've managed to update EVERY day…o.o Hopefully it continues! Anyways, thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy.

BloodRedViolet – hay! Thanks for reviewing! And I've taken your take on beyblading and adding it into the fic :) Lol, I _do_ seem to like giving Bryan cancer, don't I? I don't know whether he will die or not in this fic though. Hope you enjoy!

shininglake – hehe, Boris is an evil man! I actually have no idea why I added the preview thing in this fic. It actually helps me get the motivation to write the next chapter because I already have the beginning of it and not just a blank word document :) It really helps. Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy.

WOW! 12 reviews! Thanks so much!

Thanks to everyone who has added this fic to their alerts and/or faves.

Alerts – BloodRedViolet, Cyborgshi, Lockita, Rapunzelle, Ray-Tiger-Cat, Ugawa, Yuliya, aquaanime, hikari1992, pheonix80, shininglake, the Light Shadow, the-lone-she-wolf, walsha.

Favourites – Cyborgshi, Lockita, Rapunzelle, Ray-Tiger-Cat, Ugawa, aquaanime, dreamseeker09, p power, pheonix80, shininglake, the Light Shadow.

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_******Disclaimer: whoops, I haven't done this yet! I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does is explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 2: Day By Day It Only Gets Harder**

After three quarters of an hour, the assembly was finally over and Kai found that he couldn't wait to get out of the gymnasium. He caught Tala's eye and they both shared a look. Both of them had met Boris in their early years and it was very hard to forget a man like him. Kai still didn't know what Boris had done to Tala, as it was the one thing Tala wouldn't talk about, ever.

"Wow! What a creepy doctor!" blurted Tyson and Kai had to let a small smile appear on his lips. Trust Tyson to be the icebreaker. And when Tyson held a clenched fist to his heart and spoke in a true, proud tone, Kai had to bite back a laugh.

"I solemnly swear that I am not going to piss off anyone this term and I will not punch, kick, scream at or bite any of my fellow students. This is the promise of I, Tyson Granger!"

"I'm going to hold that promise to you, son." From behind the navy-haired teen stood a tall, brunette. Kai stared at the principal with barely contained laughter. Oh, Tyson was in for it now.

Rolling his eyes, Kai went to turn and walk to his locker when a painful twinge rocketed up his leg. Crimson orbs widening fractionally, Kai put a bandaged hand out in front of himself to protect his battered body from his hitting the ground hard. Unfortunately, his sprained wrist took the full force and gave way. Moments later he found himself sprawled on the ground, head pounding and stars circling in front of his vision.

He heard a groan elicit from somewhere and it was a few moments before he realised that it was actually himself who had groaned. The sharp pain from his ankle had dulled into a painful throb, for that he was thankful. But now the agony was radiating from his wrist, which had taken the force of the fall.

Fuck, he thought. I hope it's not broken.

"Kai!" screamed out a voice and Kai winced at the loudness of it. Screwing his eyes shut as the pounding in his head trebled, he felt several pairs of hands latching onto his arms and hauling him onto his feet.

Once standing, Kai attempted to open his eyes but quickly hid the crimson orbs from view as the world spun around him.

Balancing on only one leg, the Russian teen leant against the person holding most of his weight and let himself be lead somewhere. It all hurt so much. Individual pain he could handle, it was when he had multiple injuries and trying to hide them that they became a problem.

"Kai, you okay?" someone asked as Kai let himself be guided onto what seemed to be a bed. Shit, they were at the infirmary. Boris…

"I'm fine," was all he said. Although after he had spoken, Kai inwardly cringed. If anything, his tone had told them the exact opposite from what he had just said. He didn't think he had ever heard his voice so abrasive and hoarse before. They were definitely going to suspect something now.

"Well, who do we have here?" Kai snapped his eyes open at the newcomer and had to hide a flinch as his gaze stopped on the one man he despised just as much as his grandfather: Boris Balkov.

After averting the man's eyes, Kai finally took a look around the room and saw who was still there. He was shocked to see that every one of his 'friends' were standing or sitting somewhere in the small room.

He had actually expected to only see Tala, Bryan and maybe Tyson and Max, but definitely not Brooklyn or Rei. His biggest shock came when he looked at the person still holding his elbow lightly.

"Principal Granger?"

"Hey there, Kai. What happened?" the elder man asked and Kai heard everyone mirror the man's question.

Cornered, Kai relented and lowered his gaze. "I just got a little dizzy, that's all," he murmured, not wanting to talk about it anymore. It wasn't any of their business.

A few minutes later, Principal Granger had ushered everyone else out of the room and Kai was left, sitting on the bed with Boris and the principal standing before him.

"Now, Kai. I want the truth," Mr. Granger spoke. Kai felt his eyes widen. Shit, if the principal didn't believe him, then who the hell did? Fuck, he was so screwed now. He might as well order himself a coffin and start planning a funeral service. If his grandfather ever found out that people were suspecting abuse…

Fuck.

"I told you the truth," he snapped, coldly glaring at the man. "I got a little dizzy and fell. I didn't have much sleep last night, alright?"

Mr. Granger motioned for Boris to step forward. Kai hoped that they didn't notice the small flinch when the purple-haired man pulled up the sleeve of his black long-sleeved t-shirt.

"Then what's this all about, Kai?" he said, pointing to the slightly dirty bandage wrapped tightly around his wrist.

The room temperature seemed to drop a few degrees as Kai looked up into Principal Granger's cool brown eyes.

"Look, I said it was nothing!" he growled, clenching his uninjured hand into a fist. "Is it illegal to sprain a wrist, or something? Fucking hell…" The last part he muttered under his breath, but it didn't go un-noticed by the principal.

The man sighed, exasperated. "Fine. If you insist that it's nothing, then I'll let it slide for now. You will stay here under Mr. Balkov's care until the next period and then you will continue with your day. Okay, Kai?"

The Russian nodded, not looking forward to a full hour with Doctor Balkov. The man's doctor's papers had probably been forged. Hell, Tyson was probably more qualified to be a doctor than Boris.

"Okay. I'll see you later, Kai."

Principal Granger slowly walked to the door and opened it. Moments later the man had disappeared and the door had shut with a small click. Maybe a second of silence ensued and then Kai closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable.

"It's been a long time, Kai." Boris was saying, his voice slippery.

Kai didn't say a word. He didn't trust himself not to lash out at the man if he did speak. Boris had been the cause of so much pain for him, Tala, and he had a feeling that Bryan had been 'introduced' to the man as well.

Seeing the smirk on Boris' face, Kai frowned. What was the man up to now?

"I see that your dear old grandfather has been continuing his 'meetings,' am I right, young Kai?"

Growling lowly, Kai glared at the man, which just earned him another sleazy smile and a laugh. "Of course I'm right. Voltaire Hiwatari wouldn't just stop his favourable 'meetings', now would he? I am so glad that he also taught me how to attend and run meetings. It gives a man such pleasure to run them."

Kai's blood froze and he swore his heart stopped beating. His grandfather had taught Boris how to attend and run a meeting. Oh fuck.

Frozen, Kai couldn't make his body move as Boris' hand slid up his arm and rested on his upper arm. The man leant in close and whispered into his ear.

"Now, be a good boy and don't make a sound."

Boris' hand then moved from his arm and caressed his cheek before gripping the back of his head and braced him as the purple-haired man slid in and captured his lips with his own.

Crimson eyes widened in shock and fear as the man continued to kiss him, forcing his lips open with his tongue. A single, crystalline tear slid down a pale cheek as Kai was forced to endure the kiss.

_Oh god…please…stop…make it stop…_

* * *

…**TBC…**

**So, how was it? Oh god, I hope I don't lose any readers over that last scene. O.o**

**Please review**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 3: Try To Scream But Nobody Cares**

After the hour was up, Kai left the infirmary, Boris' sleazy smile leaving a slash in his mind. The last hour had been occupied with the man touching him and constantly leaving trails of kisses all over his face and neck.

It had been unpleasant and now but after a while, he had numbed himself from Boris' touch.

Looking at the crisp white piece of paper in his hand, Kai wound his way through scores of students to his next class, which was mathematics. He knew that Tala and Bryan weren't in his maths class, which he classed as a good thing. If he bumped into either of them, he didn't know whether or not he could keep quiet.

Five minutes later he was seated in maths, copying notes on the Pythagoras Theory when the intercom chimed overhead and the school's secretary's voice spoke.

"For anyone wishing to try out for the school's beyblading team, please meet outside the gymnasium at the beginning of lunchtime. Thank you."

Kai almost smiled. Finally, something was going right. He had been the captain of the team last year and the team had won the inter-school championships. If he could captain the team again, then maybe it would keep his mind off two certain people for at least a couple of hours a day.

"Mr. Hiwatari! Pay attention. Now, what is the answer to question four?"

Kai sighed and answered. "Thirteen." He couldn't help but scoff at the answer. Thirteen. It was the international number for back luck. Just how bad was his luck going to get?

**-Dancer-**


	4. Try To Scream But Nobody Cares

* * *

OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH! I can't believe how much you guys love this fic! 36 reviews! You guys are the best!

Review replies…

aquaanime – thanks for the review! Lol, yeah Boris is definitely an 'ewww.' Yay and I updated fast!

x-Black-Dranzer-x – thanks so much for all the kind words! I hope this chapter is just as good :)

Lockita – don't worry, I'll keep going! Thanks for the review, your words mean a lot to me :) Hope you enjoy the chapter.

cloudstrife22793 – I know the chaps are short, but I'm not going to lengthen them much because I'm trying to update once a day :) That way, you'll get just as much writing but in a shorter amount of time. I'm glad that you like it, though!

Cyborgshi – thanks! Hehe, gotta love random people XD Hope you enjoy.

SuicidalBeyblader – OH…MY…GOD…THANK YOU!! –hugs- Your review was the best! Ahhh! –squeal- thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! Oh and about the yaoi, I don't think so. It's just going to be a friendship fic. Hope you enjoy chap 4!

Lily Hiwatari – thanks! Enjoy :)

the Light Shadow- thanks for reviewing! Hehe, I hate Boris more too! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

BloodRedViolet – lol, it seems that a lot of people hate Boris now…hehe. I'm trying to update every day! And it's working :) hehe.

Rapunzelle – Their school would really suck, especially with having Boris as a doctor…o.o Run for the hills! Thanks for reviewing, hope you like chap 4.

FlamingIce94 – lol, I think a lot of people wonder if it's normal to like Kai-torture. Yet you look at some of the most popular fics and they're Kai-torture…O.o Enjoy chapter 4!

shininglake – thanks for reviewing! There won't be too much more BorisKai stuff. It even creeps ME out and I'm the one who wrote it…Hope you like the new chapter.

american farmer – thanks! I'm glad that you like it XD Hope you enjoy the new chapter!

StarShinobi – holy f..k! There are a lot of reviews…anyway, thanks for reviewing! OMG your review put the most strange, disgusting, FUNNY picture in my head of Boris' face turning into a pigs butt and Voltaire giving it a nice big, kiss! –sweatdrop- omg, I laughed so hard. Everyone was staring………o.o Hope you enjoy!

pheonix80 – thanks for the review! Lol, I think the 'scene' was a bit creepy too…hope you enjoy the chapter :)

HOLY CRAP! **FOURTEEN REVIEWS! **I love you guys! You ROCK!

On with the chapter.

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101

* * *

_**

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 3: Try To Scream But Nobody Cares**

After the hour was up, Kai left the infirmary, Boris' sleazy smile leaving a slash in his mind. The last hour had been occupied with the man touching him and constantly leaving trails of kisses all over his face and neck.

It had been unpleasant and now but after a while, he had numbed himself from Boris' touch.

Looking at the crisp white piece of paper in his hand, Kai wound his way through scores of students to his next class, which was mathematics. He knew that Tala and Bryan weren't in his maths class, which he classed as a good thing. If he bumped into either of them, he didn't know whether or not he could keep quiet.

Five minutes later he was seated in maths, copying notes on the Pythagoras Theory when the intercom chimed overhead and the school's secretary's voice spoke.

"For anyone wishing to try out for the school's beyblading team, please meet outside the gymnasium at the beginning of lunchtime. Thank you."

Kai almost smiled. Finally, something was going right. He had been the captain of the team last year and the team had won the inter-school championships. If he could captain the team again, then maybe it would keep his mind off two certain people for at least a couple of hours a day.

"Mr. Hiwatari! Pay attention. Now, what is the answer to question four?"

Kai sighed and answered. "Thirteen." He couldn't help but scoff at the answer. Thirteen. It was the international number for back luck. Just how bad was his luck going to get?

**That night…**

Obviously his luck had to get much, much worse.

Kai screamed as Voltaire twisted his hurt wrist backwards. The pain was unbelievable, flaring with each and every movement.

He was once again lying on the floor, beaten and bloody. Although Voltaire had been a little easier than the night before, Kai could still feel his previous wounds reopening from the punches, slices and kicks. When was it ever going to stop?

"Dirty little piece of scum," he heard his grandfather mutter and moments later, the Russian teen felt the familiar slice and pull of skin ripping open. He screamed again and looked up to see the knife swiping downwards again. Kai quickly rolled out of the way and the knife plunged into the floorboards with a loud twang.

If he had still been lying there, the knife would have plunged straight into his chest…

Gasping, Kai tried to draw in deep breaths and found that he couldn't. Shit, his asthma was playing up again. He had been lucky for the past few years as it hadn't been a problem and because of that, Voltaire had thought that he had been making the whole thing up so that he could get out of their regular Meetings.

However, he hadn't been making it up. When it had been at its worst, some of the maids had somehow retrieved inhalers to help fight the symptoms. Kai hadn't had an attack in four years.

The sudden shortness of breath scared him a little, knowing that if it got any worse then he knew that he was in the early stages of an asthma attack. Luckily, the shortness of breath passed a minute later and he slumped onto the floor, drained of all energy.

"You're a disgrace to this family."

Screwing his eyes shut, Kai waited to the predicted kick in the ribs that ended every Meeting. He opened them again, confused, when there was no kick. He frowned as he watched Voltaire walk away from him, the elder man's steps strong and loud.

What did it mean? Was Voltaire…?

_Fuck…_To Kai, it was worse that the man hadn't finished. Now, he didn't know what his grandfather was planning and it could mean much more pain for him.

A sudden thought hit him. He gasped as he unconsciously lifted his battered body off the floor a little and his wounds made themselves very known.

Boris and his grandfather knew each other. They were both as evil as the other and Kai knew for a fact that his grandfather was helping Boris to reopen the Abbey Orphanage as a beyblading facility to concentrate on illegal experiments and training children to beyblade like soldiers. Boris would have told his grandfather about the beyblade tryouts…

**Earlier that day: lunchtime…**

"Right!" spoke the man in charge of putting together the beyblading team. He was a jolly man, with a balding head and a bulging stomach. His name was Stanley Dickinson and he was the school's representative from the BBA (Beyblade Battle Association).

"Today I will be holding the tryouts for the Bakuten Beyblading A and B Grade Teams. Last years A-Team did exceptionally well and I hope that this year's team will follow in their footsteps."

Kai looked around and saw that everyone present was hanging onto every last word the man was saying. The A and B-Grade Teams were only high school level, but placing in the top 3 at the inter-school championships was normally a blader's ticket to the pro-circuit.

The bluenette didn't know whether or not he wanted to go pro yet. Of course, as the captain to the winning team, he had been offered many opportunities to join the world's best teams including Ignition Flight; the number two team in the world.

He had turned them all down because of his grandfather.

"So anyone who would like to try out for the A and B Teams, would you please sign your names on the pieces of paper to my right here." Mr. Dickinson motioned to the pieces of paper on the table next to him. "And those who would just like to compete in inter-school friendly matches, please sign your names on the paper on my left."

Kai saw Tyson, Max, Rei, Brooklyn and the two Russians immediately head over to the paper to sign for the A Team. Kai hesitated, not knowing whether or not to try out for the top two teams.

When he saw Tala shoot him a look, Kai gave in and half strode, half limped over to the A Team table. After signing his name below Tala's, the bluenette stood back and half listened to what Stanley Dickinson was saying.

"Alright," he started cheerfully. "I've had a look at the team listings and I have made up my mind as to the captain of the A Team-"

There was a flurry of yells and protests at that and Kai knew exactly why. It was everyone's dream to captain the A Team. It pretty much meant that you were the best blader in the school. He knew from the instant he signed his name that he would be captain again.

"Quiet!" The man yelled, frowning at the students' response. "The person I have chosen has had experience as a captain before and he is _more_ than capable of leading the team to victory. I have had the pleasure of seeing him battle and I would like – if he would accept – to ask Kai Hiwatari to be the captain of the Bakuten A Team."

Kai felt everyone's eyes on him as his name was called out. He looked over at Mr. Dickinson and nodded his head slightly.

The man's face lit up at his answer and Kai rolled his eyes. OF course the old guy was going to choose him. He had lead the last years team to win the championships, so why not try and chose someone who had already done it before? It was plain common sense.

"Tomorrow the one-on-one matches will be held to determine the rest of the teams and until then, brush up on your skills and tomorrow the teams will be decided!"

Walking away from the hopeful students, Kai let his gaze linger on the A Team sheet and froze. Shit, Brooklyn was trying out.

**Present time…**

Trying to staunch the blood flowing from a re-opened wound, Kai staggered upstairs where, no doubt, a maid would be waiting for him outside his room with the essential bandages and the such.

Taking a quick look at the time, Kai cursed. It was almost nine, which meant that Bryan was going to be calling soon. The lilac-haired teen always called at nine on a Monday night.

Slowly making his way to his bedroom, Kai let the pain wash over him in waves. He heard his grandfather moving about in his study and carefully avoided going anywhere near the room.

How long was it going to take for the elder man to finally stop the beatings? Kai had never wanted the beatings, but he had thinking about the daily occurrence for a while and what it would be like not getting the shit beat out of him every day. At first, it would probably feel extremely wrong.

Sure enough, as he reached his room, a maid was standing outside the closed door, a basket secured safely in her arms.

Letting them both in, Kai slipped his t-shirt over his head. He winced as the material pulled at his wounds, ripping off some of the scabs and letting the red fluid run freely again.

As the blonde-haired maid cleaned and bandaged his wounds, Kai retrieved his cellphone just as it began to ring. The familiar tone of _HIM_'s, _Rip Out The Wings Of A Butterfly _pounding from the small speaker.

He held the black contraption to his ear and let a tiny smile grace his lips as Bryan's voice sounded through.

"Hey Bry."

"_So, Kai…how's everything?"_ Bryan's worried voice spoke. Kai slumped a little, eliciting a wince as his wounds pulled.

"Everything's good, Bryan. What about you? How's the Chemo going?" Bryan was currently being treated with chemotherapy. He had only just started the treatment, so he was still able to go to school and his skin was still a reasonable colour.

"I dunno. The Chemo sucks. I feel so sick afterwards, but I guess I can't do anything about it except take their stupid, damn medication." There was a slight pause before the Russian continued. "I swear! I will never take medication after this bout of Chemo is done! Ever!"

Snorting slightly, Kai rubbed a hand over his face before stopping abruptly as he rubbed over a nasty cut above his right eye. Shit, that one he wasn't going to be able to hide very well.

"Anyway, Kai. Sorry it's only a short call, but I've gotta go. I'm not feeling so good. Dunno if I'll be at school tomorrow."

"Kay, Bry." He hit the 'end call' button, threw the phone onto his bed and picked up his beyblade. For some reason, there was a bad feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. He had a feeling that tomorrow was going to bring something bad, but he wasn't quite sure what.

_I don't know anymore, Dranz,_ he thought. There was a slight warming feeling that erupted from the blue beyblade in his hand. _I don't know what to do…_

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 4: Through The Glass You See The Same Faces**

He screamed as the whip crashed down on his bare back again and again. Crimson eyes screwed shut in pain as the blood dripped relentlessly from the deep slashes criss-crossing over the pale flesh.

"Please…" he chocked. He couldn't take much more. It hurt too much. The cold of the whip battled against the burning of the slashes and the cold seemed to be winning. Oh fuck, it hurt so much.

"…stop…"

His vision was fading, blurring at the edges. The darkness was closing in slowly, but surely. His grandfather had gone too far this time. Kai didn't know what had set the man off, but earlier that morning the Russian man had lost it and the beating had started.

Almost four hours later, Kai was at the end of his rope. He looked up wearily and coughed, flecks of deep red flecking his blue-tinged lips. His breathing had slowed significantly and Kai knew that it wasn't because he was calm.

"Why…?"

His grandfather didn't answer. He just kept on slashing. Kai could hear him muttering under his breath, but he was too far-gone to understand what he was saying.

A flash of red flared across his vision and then the impending blackness rapidly spread.

One last gasp of pain and then Kai knew only the obsidian darkness.

**-Dancer-**


	5. Through The Glass You See The Same Faces

Holy…WOW! Thanks everyone! You've made my day! So far there have been 711 hits, 48 reviews, 17 favourites and 20 alerts!

Review replies…

Rapunzelle – thanks for reviewing! There will be more about Bryan and Brooklyn in later chapters :)

shininglake – thanks for the review! You'll have to read on to find out whether or not Kai will tell anyone! Hope you enjoy the chapter XD

the Light Shadow – I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make anyone cry! Hehe, maybe I will let my readers decide on whether or not Voltaire will be killed and how…it would make an interesting poll XD Thanks for reviewing and all the kind words! Hope you enjoy!

StarShinobi – hehe, I LOVE being evil! Lol, I laughed at my imagery too. My mum looked at me as though I was insane…O.o Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

d1bontemp – lol, I'm trying to update every day! So far, so good! I swear, I haven't had the urge to write so much since the beginning of IFOF over a year ago…Thanks! Enjoy XD

Cyborgshi – thank you, thank you, thank you! I hope you like this chapter XD More evil Voltaire…o.o

american farmer – lol, I don't know if I can be THAT evil, but I shall try! I never knew that people love authors to be evil to their borrowed characters…o.o Oh well, I'll try my hardest to be evil! –sweatdrop- Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy.

HimekoSukie – thanks so much for the review! Hopefully the update was quick enough for you! Hope you enjoy chapter 5 as much as 4 XD

Amanita Virosa-Amaranthus- - wow, what a cool name! Thanks so much for the review! Hope I updated quick enough!

FlamingIce94 – hello again! –waves- Thanks so much for the kind words! They mean a lot coming from you :) Hope you enjoy.

Keight Ylonen – HI!! –waves- Thanks so much for reviewing! Don't worry; I will DEFINITELY be continuing this fic! Your suggestions have put thoughts into my mind, so you might see a version of them later in the fic. Yeah! THE RASMUS FORVER!! My mate recently downloaded the live versions of Living In A World Without You and Ten Black Roses for me! Oh and the release date for Black Roses is…SEPTEMBER 24!! Hope you enjoy chapter 5!

aquaanime – thanks for reviewing! I hope I updated quick enough! Enjoy.

Wow, 12 reviews again! You guys ROCK! On with the chapter XD

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

****

_DancerInTheDark101_

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 4: Through The Glass You See The Same Faces**

He screamed as the whip crashed down on his bare back again and again. Crimson eyes screwed shut in pain as the blood dripped relentlessly from the deep slashes criss-crossing over the pale flesh.

"Please…" he chocked. He couldn't take much more. It hurt too much. The cold of the whip battled against the burning of the slashes and the cold seemed to be winning. Oh fuck, it hurt so much.

"…stop…"

His vision was fading, blurring at the edges. The darkness was closing in slowly, but surely. His grandfather had gone too far this time. Kai didn't know what had set the man off, but earlier that morning the Russian man had lost it and the beating had started.

Almost four hours later, Kai was at the end of his rope. He looked up wearily and coughed, flecks of deep red flecking his blue-tinged lips. His breathing had slowed significantly and Kai knew that it wasn't because he was calm.

"Why…?"

His grandfather didn't answer. He just kept on slashing. Kai could hear him muttering under his breath, but he was too far-gone to understand what he was saying.

A flash of red flared across his vision and then the impending blackness rapidly spread.

One last gasp of pain and then Kai knew only the obsidian darkness.

**--**

Voltaire smirked when his grandson finally lost consciousness. The brat had been holding on for _four _hours. At first, he had enjoyed the resilience of the boy, but after the second hour came and went he started to get more and more annoyed. The four-hour mark was his last straw.

Looking down at Kai's motionless form, the Russian tycoon spat at his body and turned to see Boris standing in the doorway. The purple-haired man had a sleazy smirk planted on his face and Voltaire felt his anger flare up. Boris was one of his most loyal and trusted employees – he was in charge of running Balkov Abbey, a front for the illegal experiments and training of the BIOVOLT Corporation.

But one thing Voltaire absolutely despised about the man was his sick fascination with his grandson. Boris was not shy about his sexuality and one of the first things Voltaire learnt was that the purple-haired man leant towards the same sex.

It had been a few weeks after he had been first hired, that Voltaire had found out about the fascination with Kai. He had been sifting through paperwork for a new batch of machines to help with extracting human genes and implanting them into other beings when he had found Boris in his grandson's room.

Kai had been only six at the time and when Voltaire found the two, Boris was staring into Kai's overly large crimson eyes and planting a firm kiss on the boy's lips.

Voltaire had been furious and from that moment on, Boris had been forbidden from even _talking_ about the boy.

Snapping himself from the thoughts, Voltaire once again looked down at his grandson, bleeding and bruised, on the floor. The markings across his back, torso, arms and legs were very suspicious and he knew that if someone were to stumble across them, then everything would be found out and he would definitely lose his favourite punching bag.

Scenarios ran through his head until just the right one came along.

Calling out to Boris, Voltaire ordered the man to stage a major car accident.

_No one will ever know what really happened. I'll lose Kai for a few weeks maybe, but it will all be fine in the long run._

**--**

Kai felt funny. His mind was running in circles, trying to escape the darkness that had shrouded his world. He couldn't see a thing, just the eternal sky of black that spread forever.

"_What the hell is going on?"_

He couldn't hear his voice, yet he swore he had spoken. Kai didn't like the place one bit. It was starting to freak him out.

_:Master:_

"_Dranzer!?" _he spoke/thought. _"What…what's going on? Where am I?"_

Suddenly, a stunning deep red filled the darkness and moments later; Kai saw his faithful phoenix appear out of the light. Her icy blue eyes shining and contrasting deeply with her deep red, orange and gold feathers.

_:Everything is not as it seems, Master. Your grandfather is planning something, something bad. I do not know what exactly, though:_

Kai was confused. How was Dranzer in the realm of darkness? What was his grandfather planning? _Where the hell was he!?_

_:I cannot stay too long, Master. Just, please, be careful. I do not wish to lose you just yet:_

After speaking, the phoenix started to fade. The magnificent colours of her feathers faded into dull browns and greys until completely fading into a tone just above black. Her ice-blue eyes that reminded the Russian teen so much of his friend, Tala, discoloured into a white. Then, she was gone.

"_Dranzer!"_ Kai screamed, not wanting the phoenix to leave. Her warmth that had flooded his veins at her appearance disappeared as soon as she faded, leaving him feeling cold and so very alone.

Abruptly, there was a sharp pain in his stomach. Moving a hand towards the pain, Kai gasped when his hand felt the warm liquid seeping through his clothing. _What…?_

Another burst of pain flared; this time from his head. He screwed his eyes shut and willed for the pain to disappear. Unfortunately, it didn't.

Oh god…what's happening? Why does it hurt so much? Dranzer…

Feeling a tear trail down his cheek, Kai flicked his eyes open, only to shut them abruptly as an intense light glared into his pupils. He was confused. Only moments before, he had been surrounded by complete darkness.

Sirens filled the air, wailing loudly against the chirping of birds in their nests. A deep voice spoke to him, yet Kai couldn't figure out what was being said.

He groaned again, wondering why nothing was making sense any more. Where was he now? Why did his body hurt so much?

_Oh…that's right. Grandfather and I had a Meeting again, didn't we? No wonder, my body hurts._

Even though he was telling himself that it was the beating that made the pain, something in his sub-consciousness was saying that there was something else. There was something very important that he was missing.

"Mmmmm…" he moaned, as the hammering in his head got unexpectedly worse.

"Hey! I got a response!" the same deep voice called out. Kai winced at the loud sound, desperately trying to stop the warm liquid on his stomach from moving anywhere with his hands.

As he was clasping his stomach, Kai felt a foreign object being placed around his neck. He tried to fight whatever it was, but he found his limbs unwilling to obey his commands.

"It's okay," soothed another voice, this time female. "We're just putting a brace around your neck so that you don't injure yourself any more than you already are, okay?"

Injure him more? What…?

"Right, we got him secured! Let's get the kid out of here!"

"Any other casualties? None? What the hell happened here?"

The other voices around him made no sense, Kai reasoned. What were they talking about?

"W-what…?" he trailed off, choking on a sticky liquid in his mouth. Even though his throat seemed to be moist, he found that talking hurt and he quickly ran out of breath.

"Shhh…" the female voice soothed again. "It's okay, sweetie. You've just got a bit of blood there, okay?"

Opening his mouth to try and speak again, Kai stopped before any sound had made its way out. Instead, a hacking cough forced its way up and out.

As he coughed, Kai felt his throat starting to close up and his air supply slowly start to dwindle away. Shit, his asthma…

Heaving, Kai tried to take in air. When none came, the teen started to panic, eyes widening and darting around the place frantically. He couldn't breathe!

After what seemed an eternity, a voice called out, alarmed. "Shit! Marie, he's having an asthma attack!"

Several voices started speaking in rapid, concerned tones as Kai felt himself be lifted upwards and into some kind of vehicle.

"Get him on oxygen, now! Clear his airways!" A large tube was forcefully shoved down this throat and Kai gagged, wanting the object out of his airway. He couldn't breathe, so they shoved a large, plastic object down his throat!?

Kai started thrashing about, wanting them to stop messing with his already fucked airway, when abruptly, air started flowing back into his lungs. Shocked beyond belief, Kai went limp, gasping. Taking in huge lung fulls of air, the Russian teen noticed that the siren was louder in the vehicle than it had been outside.

He still didn't know what had happened…

Calmed quite a bit, Kai took his time to groggily look around the vehicle. There were wires protruding from almost every surface and many monitors were beeping loudly. On the other side was a bed and two men were sitting on it, faces relieved and happy. The one on the left met his gaze and smiled.

"Hey there. You doing okay now?" His voice was appeasing, kind. Kai felt himself relax slightly at his voice. He nodded slightly, wincing as the pain in his head started to throb again.

'You've been in a bad car accident, but we're taking you to a hospital to fix you up, okay?"

Car accident? Kai felt his heart speed up when the word 'hospital' was mentioned. He didn't want to go to hospital. He didn't need to go. He was fine, really.

Shaking his head hysterically, the blue-haired teen pleaded with his eyes at the man. Surely they wouldn't take him to the hospital? If he went there, they would find out about his grandfather. No one was supposed to know!

"Hey…Hey, calm down. It's okay."

Kai caught the worried look of the man and struggled harder. He wasn't going to the damn hospital!

"Hey!" the other man shouted as he dislodged a needle and thing tube inserted into the back of his right hand. He flung his hand out and smacked the guy in the face and the man went flying backwards, obviously unprepared for the attack.

The next thing Kai went to remove was the tube down his throat. He grasped the clear tubing with both hands, not caring that moving the left one made pains shoot up and down his arm.

"Shit! No, don't do that!"

Not listening to the men's words, Kai kept tugging. He felt the tubing shift in his throat and soon after the warm of blood flowed down his throat. It hurt and Kai gasped, trying to move the tube so it didn't scrape along the side of his throat.

Immediately the pain went away, but another pain started in his lungs. Shit! He knew a punctured lung when he felt one and he definitely had one. Moving the tubing around wasn't helping at all and he coughed, feeling the blood welling in his lungs forcing its way up his airway. It bubbled through his lips as he tried to breathe.

"I got a sedative!"

The words didn't register as a sharp, cold pinprick flared in his right wrist. He turned his head towards his right and saw the man with the kind voice pushing a syringe into his vein.

Instantly his vision started to go blurry and he felt extremely dizzy. Blinking rapidly, he forgot about the tube down his throat and focused on trying to stay awake. If he fell asleep, he knew he would wake up in a hospital. He couldn't let that happen!

But even his power of will couldn't stop his eyes from closing and his world was once again bathed in an inescapable darkness.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 5: Hear The Voices Play Fade A Drum**

Tala sat in a chair next to Kai's bed. The stark white of the room was beginning to get to him, something he had expected to happen a lot earlier. The redhead had been sitting in the same chair, in the same room, staring at the same unconscious person for just over six hours.

Tala had been in school when the school secretary had informed him of the crash that had landed his best friend in hospital. He had raced straight to the hospital and found out that Kai was currently in surgery.

The redhead had waited for over three hours for the other Russian to come out of the operating room.

Now, Tala was waiting for Kai to wake. The doctor in charge of Kai's care had said it _should_ take anywhere between two and ten hours for the teen to wake, maybe even longer. No one knew what damage the head injury had caused.

_Beep…beep…beep…beep…_

The insistent beeping of Kai's heart monitor was starting to get on his nerves. The only comfort he gained from hearing the beeping was that Kai's heart was still beating. The fact that he needed one scared the shit out of him.

"Tala?"

Looking over to the doorway, Tala saw Bryan standing there. His face was pale and he looked sick.

"Hey," he whispered. It felt too weird to talk normally when the room itself was so damn quiet.

"How is he?" came the reply.

Tala was silent for a while. It was a loaded question…one he really didn't want to answer. Eventually, he gave in and told Bryan exactly what the doctors had told him.

"We don't know if Kai will ever wake up…"

­**-Dancer-**


	6. Hear The Voices Play Fade A Drum

Hey guys! Thanks for all your wonderful comments. I've made the chapter a little longer as a present for passing the 50 review mark XD

Review replies…

the Light Shadow – thanks! That's alright, I'm quite busy myself. I hope you enjoy reading last chapter and this chapter.

blazing-fire-phoenix – thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like it. Hope I updated quick enough XD

american farmer – thanks! lol, I can barely manage ONE a day! To answer your question; yes, his home life will be found out. It just might take a while. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

StarShinobi – thanks for reviewing! You'll find out why Voltaire does what he does later on XD Enjoy chap 6

Cyborgshi – thanks! I'm glad that you liked the chapter. Truth is, I don't particularly like it, but hey, everyone else seems to. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

aquaanime – ahh, I made you cry? Good? Bad? Don't know?? Um, if you liked it, great! If you didn't, I hope you like this chapter!

Yuliya – thank you! I tried hard to make the ambulance scene believable XD Enjoy.

Rapunzelle – thanks for reviewing! Hope you didn't have to wait too long XD

shininglake – the car crash is explained in this chapter, plus things are revealed to certain people :) Hope you enjoy!

Nameless Little Girl – long time, no see! Hi! Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked it! Enjoy.

pheonix80 – don't worry, you're not the only one who hates hospitals :) Thanks for reviewing! Hope you like the chapter XD

Wow, another 11 reviews! Thanks guys. Also, a bit of a warning: my fetish for American muscle cars comes through in this chapter…you have been warned lol.

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 5: Hear The Voices Play Fade A Drum**

Tala sat in a chair next to Kai's bed. The stark white of the room was beginning to get to him, something he had expected to happen a lot earlier. The redhead had been sitting in the same chair, in the same room, staring at the same unconscious person for just over six hours.

Tala had been in school when the school secretary had informed him of the crash that had landed his best friend in hospital. He had raced straight to the hospital and found out that Kai was currently in surgery.

The redhead had waited for over three hours for the other Russian to come out of the operating room.

Now, Tala was waiting for Kai to wake. The doctor in charge of Kai's care had said it should take anywhere between two and ten hours for the teen to wake, maybe even longer. No one knew what damage the head injury had caused.

_Beep…beep…beep…beep…_

The insistent beeping of Kai's heart monitor was starting to get on his nerves. The only comfort he gained from hearing the beeping was that Kai's heart was still beating. The fact that he needed one scared the shit out of him.

"Tala?"

Looking over to the doorway, Tala saw Bryan standing there. His face was pale and he looked sick.

"Hey," he whispered. It felt too weird to talk normally when the room itself was so damn quiet.

"How is he?" came the reply.

Tala was silent for a while. It was a loaded question…one he really didn't want to answer. Eventually, he gave in and told Bryan exactly what the doctors had told him.

"We don't know if Kai will ever wake up…"

His statement was met with silence and Tala locked gazes with the other teen. Bryan's pale eyes were wide and Tala could see a hint of fear and uncertainty hidden in their depths.

"What do you mean, 'he might never wake up!?'" Bryan growled, stalking into the room quietly and staring down at the prone form of his friend.

Kai's slate hair limply fell into his closed eyes, obscuring his dark lashes from view. His face was pale and the four cobalt blue fin tattoos etched in his cheeks contrasted starkly with the white of his skin.

A large, bloody scratch slashed across two of the tattoos, redness blurring around the wound, making the tattoos seem a kind of purple colour.

Tala watched as Bryan slumped somewhat as he stared at the unconscious teen. The redhead sympathised with the pale-haired teen. Nothing seemed to be going right for Bryan at the moment. His cancer was causing his body havoc, he was missing school because of it and his grades were dropping drastically. Now, one of his closest friends was in hospital, and no one knew if he was ever going to wake up.

"Bry…" he started, stopping at the heart-wrenching expression was wearing. "He's gonna be okay, you know that right? Kai's not a quitter. He's not gonna give up so easily, kay?"

Bryan nodded inattentively and kept staring at Kai's too pale face. There was a large tube inserted in his mouth and going down his throat into his lungs. A hissing sound filled the air every time Kai breathed in and Bryan knew that the machine was a ventilator. You only went on a ventilator when your body couldn't breathe for itself.

"Tala, what if doesn't get better? He's on a vent…that's never a good thing."

Tala sighed at the crestfallen tone. Why was everything going wrong now? He followed Bryan's gaze and had to bite back a tremble in his breathing as he watched his best friend breathing through a machine.

"Hey, what's that?"

Tala turned, confused. He saw Bryan point at something on Kai's arm. Frowning, the blue-eyed teen stood and leant over Kai's prone form and took a closer look at his right arm.

Just above the bandage covering his wrist, there was a slash rising right up his arm and under the hideous blue t-shirt that they had dressed the boy in. Tala reached out and ran a finger lightly over the slash. It wasn't a cut, but more of a welt.

The redhead turned to Bryan, shock marring his features. What the hell could cause a _welt_ like that?

"Tala…you don't think?" Bryan started and Tala finally dawned onto what the teen was implying a few moments later. His blue eyes widened and he stared at Kai in horror.

_Oh god. Please don't let it be true. Please…_

Bryan's quiet voice floated into his mind. Tala felt like he was under water; everything was distorted and seemed out of place. His mind couldn't comprehend the fact. His best friend couldn't be…could he?

"Tala…he's not…not…oh god Tala, he is, isn't he?"

Tala couldn't answer. How could you answer a question like that?

"Bryan," he whispered solemnly. "I think Voltaire's doing it. I think Kai's getting abused by his grandfather…" There, he said it. He said the dreaded 'A' word. His best friend was being abused by the only family he had left.

"What are we going to do now, Tala? If he is, we can't let it go on like this! Voltaire…" He stumbled over his words a little. "Voltaire has done enough damage as it is. He can't be…be allowed to do this to him anymore."

Unbeknownst to them, a certain purple-haired man was standing in the shadows of the doorway, listening to every word they said.

--

The darkness was billowing outwards like the clouds of a large explosion. He couldn't see anything apart from the eternal colour of black. Not a shred of light could be seen, no matter how much he turned or how hard he looked. He was surrounded by complete darkness.

From somewhere unknown, he could hear voices. They were distorted, growing louder and quieter at random. He could tell that whoever was speaking was worried, though.

_"…he's not…not…oh god."_

_"I think…abused…grandfather…"_

_"He can't be allowed to do this to him anymore."_

He couldn't tell who was speaking, but their voices sounded familiar. A strange hissing sound invaded his senses as he lay in the darkness. Actually, he didn't know if he was lying, standing or sitting. He couldn't feel a thing, he could only hear strange voices and hissing sounds and the occasional loud beep.

The darkness, combined with the strange noises, was beginning to scare him. He didn't like where he was. He wanted to get out.

_Please! Someone! Help me! _Abruptly, all feeling came back to him. He screamed, arching his back as agonising flares of pain radiated from every muscle, every pore. He wrapped his arms around his stomach, trying in vain to stop the cramping possessing his body.

Everything hurt so much.

_Please…stop…make it stop!_

He curled in on himself, hyperventilating as he tried to ignore the pain. Why wasn't it going away? Gasping, he choked back the sobs threatening to overwhelm him and screamed. He screamed until his throat was sore and wouldn't allow him to scream any more.

But even then, the darkness wouldn't let him slip into a realm of unconsciousness to relieve the pain.

_Somebody…anybody…please…make it stop…_

--

**One day before…**

Boris smirked as he talked to one of BIOVOLT's lower class employees. The man was short, with mousy hair, pale skin and yellow teeth, stained that colour from too many years of smoking. His teeth were crooked and his nose looked as though it had been broken many times in the past. The man was hideous.

"Good," he said, pleased with the man's answer. The rat-look-a-like was going to die so that Voltaire's obsession with abusing his grandson could be hidden.

To stage a car accident was easy. To make it believable was the hard part and Boris knew that to make it seem like a genuine freak accident, someone had to die. A bit harsh, yes, but Boris had no feelings and didn't care if the rat-man was killed or not. Everyone was going to die sooner or later.

"Boris!" boomed a loud and authorative voice. The purple-haired man turned to see his boss striding towards him, impatience strewn across his face. "Have you sorted out everything yet?"

"Yes, Sir," he responded, pleased with the appreciative look Voltaire was shooting him. "I have obtained two cars that can be wasted, a location for the incident, a willing employee and a time to initiate the event."

Voltaire looked very pleased. "Well done, Boris. If everything goes to plan, you shall be well rewarded." He turned sour. "No one will ever know about Kai and I and our meetings."

Boris nodded and then left, noticing that Voltaire had stayed behind and was talking seriously to the man who looked like a rat.

The purple-haired man strode down many corridors, knowing the way by memory. At last, he reached a large, wooden door and opened it to reveal a large, plain room.

In the middle of the room was a king-size bed with a figure lying in the centre. Compared to the large bed and vast amount of space around it, the figure seemed tiny.

From where he was standing, Boris could hear the wheezing as the boy struggled to breathe properly. His face was pale and there was a large amount or drying blood surrounding his body.

Boris tiptoed over to the bed, not wanting to wake the injured teen. Once there, he sat down on the edge of the bed and reached over. Placing a hand on the boy's cheek, he felt the soft, smooth skin under his fingertips and bit back a moan of pleasure. The boy was so perfect, so _innocent_.

The Russian man let his thoughts roam when he suddenly slammed his thoughts away. This was not the time to be thinking thoughts like that. He had a job to do and it was to potentially kill the boy lying before him.

Sighing, he pulled back the sheets covering the boy and lifted him into his arms, bridal style. He rested the teen's head on his chest and smiled softly when his slate locks fell into his closed eyes. When sleeping, excluding the wheezing of his breath, the boy looked like an angel of darkness.

He walked out of the room, the boy tucked in his arms. Boris made his way through the maze of hallways and rooms that made up the Hiwatari mansion and finally reached his destination – the garage.

Parked inside the garage were two stunningly beautiful cars. Boris had handpicked the cars himself.

The car the rat-man was to be driving was a deep blue 1969 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am with hot red flames decorating the sides of the car and a large, stylish emblem of a phoenix on the hood.

The other car was the one that the boy in his arms was going to be in. It was obsidian black, with specks of silver and red dispersed through the glossy paint. It was in fact a 1967 Dodge Challenger. (AN: lol, I HAD to put American muscle cars into it somehow :) Gotta love them).

It had been a tough job, choosing which car to destroy for the boy in his arms. Boris had tossed up between the Challenger and a blood red 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. However, he found that he couldn't destroy a Chevy, since they were in fact Kai Hiwatari's favourite kind of car.

Sliding said teen into the black Challenger, Boris looked over to see Rat-face getting into the Pontiac. He looked over and motioned to another man standing on the far side of the garage next to a deep blue and silver Chevrolet Corvette.

The man slid over at the motion and opened the driver's side door of the Challenger. He was to be the other person killed in the accident; being Kai's driver.

Boris smirked as the two cars started, their V8 engines growling deeply with the power that resided under the metal hood.

_Let the fun and games begin._

--

**A busy street in Bakuten, Tokyo…**

People milled in the street, shopping, talking or working. Cars flowed up and down the road, stopping at red lights and starting again at the green.

Two cars took the most notice of the crowds of people though. American muscle cars were fairly rare in Tokyo and to see two of them on the same street was a bit of a rare occurrence.

The two drivers of the Dodge Challenger and Pontiac Firebird were talking, leaning against their cars. In the passenger seat of the Dodge was a teenage boy, seemingly asleep.

After a few more minutes of conversing the two drivers got back in their respective vehicles and hit the road.

Miguel stared at the deep blue car as it pulled out of the car park. The V8's tyres screamed in protest and it roared down the road, going way too fast. Miguel shook his head. Some driver's these days. All they ever cared about was going fast and looking good.

He didn't even have enough time to yell as the other muscle car that he had seen pulled out of a side road, onto the busy street. The Pontiac flew past just as the Challenger turned, slamming directly into the driver's side door.

Mouth agape, the Spaniard watched as both cars slid across the tarmac, sparks flying. The black car hit a street lamp and was suddenly airborne, flipping several times before slamming back onto the road and barely missing another car.

The blue car rolled, the roof caving in and windows smashing, the glass shattering across the black road. Almost immediately, a loud explosion was heard and the Pontiac burst into flames. Miguel felt sick as he heard the driver screaming as the fire ravaged his car and body.

Turning to see the carnage of the black car, Miguel saw that there was no fire, only smoke. People were starting to come out of their shock and run towards the cars, seeing if anyone had survived the horrific accident.

"There's someone alive in here!" Someone shouted, pointing to the dark coloured Dodge.

Miguel rushed over towards the dark car. He froze mid step when he saw the familiar locks of slate that belonged to a certain Russian friend of his.

_Kai…_

Breathing heavily, the blonde teen stared at the blue/grey hair and frighteningly pale face of Kai Hiwatari.

_No…_

Miguel felt his legs give way and moments later he was on the ground, staring shocked at the carnage before him, sirens sounding in the distance, smoke filling the once-blue sky.

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**Preview: Chapter 6: When Your Life's A Boat In A Bottle**

Voltaire sat at his desk, sipping from the glass of very expensive wine. The television was turned on, tuned to the news channel where a latest report from the Main Street Crash was viewing. The latest toll was that there were two dead, one seriously injured and in Intensive Care whilst ten others had been affected with minor injuries.

_So far, so good, _Voltaire thought as he watched the footage from the crash again. _Boris certainly did his homework with this one. I'm surprised. _

"Master Voltaire!" called out a voice, frantically. The Russian tycoon frowned, wondering what was going wrong now.

"What!?" he called out, angry that his leisure time had been interrupted.

"The police are here!" The door to his office opened and his assistant stuck his head through the gap. "They want to talk to you about Master Kai…"

**Sorry the preview is so short! More torture and blood next chapter! Promise XD**

**PS. For any of those who have read it, I have FINALLY updated But You Didn't. For those who haven't, please go check it out. I would really appreciate it. It's a Tala/Kai fic :) Thanks!**

**-Dancer-**


	7. When Your Life's A Boat In A Bottle

* * *

Hay there everyone! Sorry I didn't update yesterday. I worked 12 hours (from 8 in the morning, till 8 at night) and I was really tired when I got home and couldn't be bothered writing. Hope this chapter is okay!

Thanks to everyone who has reviewed/favourited/alerted this fic! You guys all rock!

Current stats: **71** reviews, **1,231** hits, **20** favourites, and** 23** alerts! THANKS!

Review replies…

american farmer – thanks! I actually don't have the chapters pre-written, I just seem to write really fast. All of IFOF's chapters were written in one day XD And yeah, Boris was the one standing in the doorway. No, he wasn't noticed. Hope you enjoy!

StarShinobi – thanks for the review! You'll find out what happens to Tala and Bryan later on XD Hope you enjoy the chapter! Sorry for the wait.

x-Black-Dranzer-x – thanks, thanks, thanks! Thank you for your wonderful words! I'm glad you liked the first chapters and hopefully you like this chapter too.

shininglake – hehe, thanks for reviewing! Although they have speculated it, Tala and Bryan don't know the full story yet. More will be revealed later XD Hope you enjoy.

the Light Shadow – love or lust? Definitely lust :) Thanks for your review! I love Miguel too, thanks to Elemental Gypsy lol. Hope you enjoy

HimekoSukie – hehe, Boris IS evil…Tala and Bryan will definitely be doing something about it. What, or when it happens, will happen in later chapters XD Enjoy.

aquaanime – you wish you were like me?? OMG I'm so flattered! You're the first person to ever say that! Thank you! I hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Cyborgshi – lol, you have a point! Hehe. Oh well, for the purpose of this fic, he _can _tiptoe lol. Glad you enjoyed. Hope you enjoy this chapter too.

pheonix80 – lol, yay! You got a point there! Thanks for reviewing, hope you enjoy the new chapter XD

Keight Ylonen – I will make him pay later on…hehehehehehe. Glad you liked last chapter! Hope you enjoy this one too XD

FlamingIce94 – thank you! Thanks for all your kind words. Hope you enjoy this chapter as well XD

d1bontemp – your questions will be answered in later chapters :) Thanks for reviewing! Hope you like this chapter too!

Wow, another 12 reviews! You are the coolest!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 6: When Your Life's A Boat In A Bottle**

Voltaire sat at his desk, sipping from the glass of very expensive wine. The television was turned on, tuned to the news channel where a latest report from the Main Street Crash was viewing. The latest was that there were toll two dead, one seriously injured and in Intensive Care whilst ten others had been affected with minor injuries.

_So far, so good, _Voltaire thought as he watched the footage from the crash again. _Boris certainly did his homework with this one. I'm surprised. _

"Master Voltaire!" called out a voice, frantically. The Russian tycoon frowned, wondering what was going wrong now.

"What!?" he called out, angry that his leisure time had been interrupted.

"The police are here!" The door to his office opened and his assistant stuck his head through the gap. "They want to talk to you about Master Kai…"

Voltaire frowned. What did the police want to talk to him about? _Surely they haven't found out. Boris' plan was too fool proof. There's no way. _

"Voltaire Hiwatari, open up, Bakuten Police," boomed a deep, coarse voice. The Russian elder sighed heavily and lifted himself from the large, leather chair situated behind the mahogany desk. He felt his joints crack; reminding him that he wasn't young anymore. He _was_ nearing fifty.

Striding over to the door like a man half his age, Voltaire opened it to see a group of five policemen, all dressed in the same garb.

"Mr. Hiwatari." The man in front – obviously the group leader – bowed slightly. The rest followed suit. "May we come in? We'd just like to ask you a few questions concerning the accident that occurred at approximately 2 PM yesterday afternoon, of which your grandson – Kai Hiwatari – was involved."

The statement was very formal and Voltaire couldn't help but feel a small amount of anxiety rise. The questioning was so out of place, it seemed like a set-up.

"Of course," he spoke and flashed a smile of sorts. He couldn't refuse the police, could he? "Come in."

Ushering them into his office, Voltaire made a quick sweep of the room to see if anything suspicious was in view. After his trained eyes made no such findings, he relaxed a little.

Slipping back into the comfortable leather chair, Voltaire faced the policemen. All of them wore identical expressions: something akin to suspicion, but not completely. He could see a hint of fear lacing their eyes.

"Mr. Hiwatari," the booming voice of the leader verbalised. "We have enough evidence to think that maybe you had a part in the setting up of the accident on Main Street, yesterday afternoon."

Voltaire mentally laughed. _That_ was what they were here for? That was no problem. He had left everything up to Boris, concerning the accident. There was no way they could pin anything on him.

Outwardly, he remained calm and decided to do a little acting. He let his eyes widen fractionally and his mouth drop open marginally. "What?" he said shocked. "How could you think that _I_ had anything to do with a purely coincidental accident that my own _grandson_ was involved in? Kai's in hospital, fighting for his life and you think that I had something to do with it!? He's my only living relative left!"

Voltaire watched as the five men glanced at each other, hesitation on their faces. He knew exactly what they were thinking: 'Would the grandfather really do something like that to his only living relative?'

"I see…" one of them pondered, lifting a hand to rub at the slight beard growing on his chin.

A sudden ringing sounded through the room and Voltaire looked over to see one of the men pulling out a cellphone. The man flipped it open and placed it to his hear, talking animatedly into the speaker.

"Yes? What, now? Okay, we'll be there as soon as we can. Yes, I know. All right, Captain. Bye."

He turned to the other four. "We've got to go. There's been a shooting in a local store and there are at least three dead. The Captain wants us there, ASAP." (ASAP: As Soon As Possible).

Voltaire hid a grin as the policemen dropped a business card on his desk. Just as they were filing through the door, one of them turned back. "We'll be back to talk to you later." The policeman's tone was vicious and Voltaire realised that at least one of them suspected something. _Shit._

"Call us if you know anything."

The door slammed shut with a final bang and the Russian tycoon slumped back into his seat. He relaxed fully and let his eyes wander to where a photo was sitting. It was of a small family, just three people.

Those three people consisted of a man, woman and a small child. The two adults were standing under the shade of what looked to be a Sakura tree and the child was sitting on a homemade swing, face bright and happy with smiles.

Voltaire felt the pang of loss as he looked at the woman. She was beautiful; long blue hair flowing down her back in gentle curls. Bangs framed her pale, yet flawless face and complimented her stunning light blue eyes.

Her name was Mikalya Hiwatari, his deceased daughter-in-law.

The man that stood next to her was a handsome man. His slate coloured hair was spiked and fell into light grey eyes that were set in a pale, but strongly chiselled face. He had an arm around the woman, although his gaze was settled on the young child between them.

His name was Nikolai Hiwatari, his deceased son.

Voltaire felt no pain when looking at his son's face. As a child, and a man, he had disobeyed everything he had been told and even went as far as marrying a woman who had no influential connections what so ever.

The Russian tycoon's gaze zeroed in on the small boy, smiling ahead at what would have been the camera.

He remembered when Kai had first been born. There had been a controversy in the maternity ward as two parents with bluish eyes had born a son with deep red eyes.

Tests were done and a few days later, doctors had informed them that the supposed perfectly healthy boy had been born almost blind.

To say they had been shocked was an understatement. Yet, as the months flew by, the little boy, named Kai Alexander Hiwatari, regained his sight. The colour of his eyes, though, remained.

Voltaire let a smile of pleasure grace his features as he thought of the red-eyed boy. He was thinking of the first time he had begun having Meetings with the boy. It had been a few weeks after Nikolai and Mikalya's deaths.

**Ten years earlier…**

"Stop!" screamed the six-year-old boy, tears running down his pale cheeks. His red eyes were puffy and watering as he tried to valiantly stop crying.

"It hurts, Grandpa! Stop it!"

Kai curled up in a ball as his grandfather's foot came in for another kick, slamming into his side. He screamed and tried to breathe. It was getting harder and harder to breathe.

"You worthless, stupid, little boy!" his grandpa spat at him, aiming another kick as his body. This time the covered foot slammed into the back of his head and Kai was flung across the room. His head pounding and stars racing around in front of his vision, he struggled to get himself upright.

Pushing himself up against the wall, Kai looked at his grandpa with blurry eyes. He gasped, trying to control the sobs wracking his small frame.

Lying propped up against the wall, he tried to stop crying. His grandpa would be angry with him if he kept crying, but his wrist hurt so much.

Kai looked down at his wrist and let out another bout of tears. His arm was hanging limply by his side, the wrist bent backwards and twisted slightly to the right.

"It hurts!" he whined, trying to let his grandpa know that he was hurting. _Why is Grandpa hurting me? Is it 'cause Mummy and Daddy are gone? Does he miss Mummy and Daddy too?_

"Kai!" the crimson-eyed boy heard his grandfather bellow at him. "Get up! You pathetic weakling!"

Not wanting to get hurt any more, Kai stood on shaky legs, trying to stop the room from spinning in dizzying circles around him. He faced his grandpa, sniffing and gasping for breath.

The darkness slowly closed in around him as his lungs signalled that they weren't getting enough air. The pain started to fade as his grandpa disappeared from view and Kai felt himself falling.

As the welcoming oblivion raced up to meet him, Kai swore he saw his Mummy and Daddy staring down at him, expressions of pain and sorrow painted on their faces.

_Mummy, Daddy…please help me. I miss you. I'm sorry I killed you. It hurts…make it stop. Mummy…Daddy…love…you…_

Then everything disappeared in a single burst of darkness.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 7: You're Surrounded, Drifting Alone**

**One week later…**

Kai moaned. Something was lodged deep in his throat. It wasn't painful, but it was uncomfortable. Air was passing through the tube and into his lungs with a hiss and Kai felt his chest rising and lowering with every hiss.

There was an annoying beep that kept sounding two or three times a second and it was a while before he realised that was in fact signalling his heartbeat.

Screwing his eyes shut tighter, he prepared himself to open them. He felt like he had been sleeping for months.

After a few moments of gathering his strength and wits, he forced his eyes open and gazed straight into the bright light of the room. He winced as the light burned his retinas and hissed.

"Kai?" came a very familiar voice, concern and shock lacing the tone.

Kai turned his head slightly to the right, grateful as the lights were dimmed. Sitting in chairs beside his bed were two people who he trusted more than anyone else.

"Tala, Bryan…" he whispered, throat sore. He couldn't believe how terrible he sounded; his voice was raspy and hoarse.

"Hey, Kai," Tala smiled lightly. "Glad to see you awake."

"What am I doing here? What happened? Where's my Mum and Dad?"

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees as the statement sunk in. Kai saw the incredulous looks plastered over his friend's faces.

_What? Why are they looking at me like that? _

"Kai…" Tala began, his voice low. "You're parents are dead…"

_WHAT!? No…they can't be dead…when, how, why? Tala has to be lying! Mum…Dad…_

* * *

**So…what do you think? Sorry if the scene where Kai is abused is a little graphic. I've had a really bad day and my friendship with my best friend is pretty much over cuz her boyfriend's a complete asshole. **

**-Dancer-**


	8. You're Surrounded, Drifting Alone

You guys are the best! I got 13 reviews for chapter 6! YAY! Once again, I can't believe how well this fic is doing! At only 7 chapters, it's got 25 alerts; yet IFOF is at chap 25 and hasn't got double the amount! (43). Thanks everyone!

Oh and thanks to all those who wished me luck for sorting out my problems with my best friend. We are currently sorting out a time to talk everything through. Hopefully everything goes well, cuz we're going to Auckland together in a few weeks for my 18th!

Review replies…

x-Black-Dranzer-x – thanks so much for the review! Your words were heart-warming XD Hehe, Kai's problem will be delved into later. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

the Light Shadow – lol, sometimes you gotta wonder why the hell Voltaire ever even had children! Hmmm…-thinking plot ideas…- thanks for reviewing, hope you enjoy XD

xBenihimex – thanks! Hopefully an update a day is quick enough for you! Hope you enjoy the chapter :)

Cyborgshi – thank you so much! Dark is what I'm going for lol. I don't think I've done a fic this dark before. I've certainly thought about writing one and I think I have a few un-posted ones on my computer…Glad you liked! Hope you enjoy.

BloodRedViolet – it's all good! Thanks for the review XD I'm working all day too, so I know what you're going through lol. Then, when I get home from work I write! Hehe. My friend and I are staring to sort things out. Thanks for the support so far! Hope you enjoy XD

jellybean-kitty – hay! Long time, no see. Sorry I haven't reviewed any of your fics for a while o.o I haven't really been reading Beyblade fics lately. I've been hooked on Devil May Cry after watching the anime XD It rocks! Thanks for your kind words! Hope you like the chapter.

shininglake – thanks! Hope you enjoy the chapter. Kai does wake up in this chapter XD

american farmer – no, Tala and Bryan didn't tell the police. More will be revealed later XD Hope I updated quick enough for you! You're lucky though, I was thinking about putting in the MOST EVIL cliffhanger I could think of, but I've decided to save it for later :) Enjoy.

Secret Thought – thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

Miako6 – you saved it onto your PSP? YOU CAN DO THAT?? WOW. Thanks for reviewing! Hehe, updated quick enough for you?? Enjoy.

HimekoSukie – omg, so many reviews! Your review did make my day a lot better! Thanks! Your words are so kind XD Hope you like this chapter as much as the last :)

pheonix80 – not exactly… :) Thanks for reviewing! My friend and I are starting to sort everything out. Hopefully it goes okay XD Enjoy.

FlamingIce94 – hehe, Voltaire definitely is a psycho! Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy the chapter, and yeah, my day was MUCH better today! (I read all the wonderful reviews XD)

OMG 13 reviews! Wheph, that took a while lol. On to the next chapter of Ten Black Roses.

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 7: You're Surrounded, Drifting Alone**

**One week later…**

Kai moaned. Something was lodged deep in his throat. It wasn't painful, but it was uncomfortable. Air was passing through the tube and into his lungs with a hiss and Kai felt his chest rising and lowering with every hiss.

There was an annoying beep that kept sounding two or three times a second and it was a while before he realised that was in fact signalling his heartbeat.

Screwing his eyes shut tighter, he prepared himself to open them. He felt like he had been sleeping for months.

After a few moments of gathering his strength and wits, he forced his eyes open and gazed straight into the bright light of the room. He winced as the light burned his retinas and hissed.

"Kai?" came a very familiar voice, concern and shock lacing the tone.

Kai turned his head slightly to the right, grateful as the lights were dimmed. Sitting in chairs beside his bed were two people who he trusted more than anyone else.

"Tala, Bryan…" he whispered, throat sore. He couldn't believe how terrible he sounded; his voice was raspy and hoarse. He also couldn't believe that he could still talk with the tubing down his throat. It didn't make any sense.

"Hey, Kai," Tala smiled lightly. "Glad to see you awake."

"What am I doing here? What happened? Where's my Mum and Dad?"

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees as the statement sunk in. Kai saw the incredulous looks plastered over his friend's faces.

_What? Why are they looking at me like that? _

"Kai…" Tala began, his voice low. "You're parents are dead…"

_WHAT!? No…they can't be dead…when, how, why? Tala has to be lying! Mum…Dad…_

A flash of blinding light burned into his eyes and Kai gasped. The light didn't hurt at all, but the shock of it made him close his eyes quickly.

When he opened his crimson orbs again, he looked over to see Tala and Bryan staring at him, concerned.

Kai's mind flitted back to what he had just thought. Why had everything been so muddled? He knew his parents were dead; they had been dead for many, many years. _Then why did I act the way I did? I know all this already. What's going on?_

"Kai?" Tala leant forward, placing his hands on his knees and gazing towards the bluenette. "You okay?"

Blinking, the injured teen nodded slowly. "Sorry. I…I don't know what happened just then. My…my head feels weird."

He frowned, bringing a bandaged hand up to massage his temple. He had a fairly bad headache pounding at his temples and it was making everything fuzzy and distorted.

A light knock came from the side of the room and Kai looked over to the door and watched warily as a tall, dark-skinned man stepped through the threshold. He was wearing a typical white coat with a large, plastic name badge clipped to the pocket over his heart. The badge read Dr. Samuel Kulsion.

"That is probably of the concussion, Mr. Hiwatari."

Kai blinked. Concussion?

"It's good to see that you're awake," the doctor continued. He strode over to the end of the bed and picked up the clipboard hanging there. Kai watched as his dark brown eyes flicked over the words written there, frowning and making small 'hmm' sounds every now and then.

After a short while, Dr. Kulsion put the clipboard back and looked at the three occupants in the room.

"Kai Hiwatari, I presume?"

Kai nodded slightly, trying not to aggravate the jackhammer that was trying to destroy his skull.

"Right. I suppose you want to know what your injuries are and how they've been treated?"

The Russian teen didn't say anything, just nodded again and leant back against the fluffy, white pillows lying against the headboard. He was tired, but focused on hearing what the doctor had to say. If he listened hard enough, maybe he could find a way to make himself better and he could finally get out of the damned hospital.

"When the car you were in crashed, it flipped several times before landing back on the road. We think that was when the head injury occurred; probably from your head slamming into the window or side of the car. You also sustained several minor burns on your arms and legs as well as a fractured right wrist and sprained ankle."

"There a is a particularity nasty contusion on your lower back from where we believe your spine was jarred massively when the vehicle hit the road after becoming airborne. Several abrasions had to be stitched in surgery when you arrived. I cannot stress enough how injured you were when you arrived here one week ago."

Kai couldn't help but gape at the man. He had been _that_ injured? "Then, Doctor?" he spoke, wincing at the coarse sound of his voice. "Why do I feel relatively okay, apart from the headache?"

"We've been pumping you with every kind of drug that we can," Samuel Kulsion explained. "I understand that you suffer from asthma?"

"That's right…"

"We've put you on a special medication that should help combat the symptoms of the asthma. I understand that you're a physical boy and tend to 'forget' to mention to people that you have asthma. This medication should help with your performance in sports, as it will clear your lungs easier and should stop the attacks from happening as frequently."

Nodding, Kai processed it all. It was a lot to take in, but he seemed to understand a lot of what the doctor was saying.

"Also," the doctor added," I suppose you're all wondering why Kai can talk with the ventilator down this throat?" They all nodded. "Well, it's still in the trial stage really, but the ventilator Kai is currently on is different to those normally used. The tubing is flexible, so flexible that it bends and flexes, so that the voice box is not completely cut off and is still able to be used."

Kai felt his eyes widen. Well, that was definitely different. He wasn't complaining.

"Right," Dr. Kulsion said, smiling at the three teens. "It's time for Kai to get some rest and there are a few more tests that we'd like to perform, so it would be best if you two left."

Kai looked at Tala and Bryan. They both looked sour at the doctor's words and Kai had to let loose a little smirk. They weren't happy, but there was nothing they could do.

Yawning, Kai closed his eyes and mumbled a 'goodbye' to his two friends.

"See ya, Kai," they chorused. The door shut with a small click.

* * *

Tala glanced over at Bryan as they walked the hallways of the hospital. It had been good that Kai had woken up, but the incident where Kai had completely forgotten that his parents had died had been scary.

_Shit!_ Tala mentally screamed. _I forgot to tell the doctor about the welt-mark we found on Kai's arm! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck…_

"…Tala?" Bryan's voice shot through his thoughts and Tala looked into Bryan's pale eyes, confused.

"What?" he growled.

"Um…" Bryan sounded a little nervous. "We're at the exit and you've been standing there with an angry look on your face for the last minute. People are staring…"

_Oh…_

"And where may you two boys be going?"

Tala stiffened. _No…it can't be! Oh, god, please no. Anybody but him…_

Turning, the redhead found himself staring into the cold, dark eyes of the man who had tormented his dreams for many, many years.

_Boris…_was the last thing he thought as something hard slammed into the back of his head, dropping him to the floor.

--

Tala screamed as the large hand came crashing towards his face. Boris' fist slammed into his cheek, sending the teen flying across the room. He hit the wall and slumped against it, finding a little relief in the cool concrete.

His head was pounding from the many hits his skull had endured. After he had been knocked out, Tala had woken to find himself in a small, concrete room. He was bound and gagged, with Bryan lying next to him.

Ever since that time, Tala had been subjected to all kinds of torture. Blood ran down his arm from a nasty knife wound, dropping onto the cold floor to made small puddles of red liquid.

Breathing heavily, Tala stole a glance at Bryan. The teen had yet to awaken and Tala had a sinking feeling that something was horribly wrong with the pale-eyed Russian. Did it have something to do with his cancer?

A sudden, hot pain flared through his leg and Tala gasped, looking up to see Boris staring down at him, wide-eyed. There was a large knife sticking out of his leg, buried to the hilt.

Shocked, Tala couldn't help but whimper as the purple-haired man pulled the knife out with a sickening slurping sound. As the knife was yanked out, Boris twisted his wrist violently to the left and Tala let a scream of agony loose.

Blood pooled in the wound and spilled over the top of his leg to stream onto the ground, mingling with the blood and sweat already decorating the stone.

Gasping as the pain continued to flare up and down his leg like hot poker irons, the redhead focused on a spot on the wall in front of him. He had to calm himself down or he would most definitely pass out.

"Now," spoke a slippery voice. Glancing up with blurry vision, Tala saw the telltale purple hair of Boris Balkov. "We are going to have a nice little _chat_ about what you and that _thing_," he motioned to Bryan, "over there found out today about my favourite little phoenix…"

Tala groaned. Boris had found out what they had seen. He was _not_ looking forward to their 'chat.'

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 8: Don't Leave Me Now

"Kai!" a loud, intruding voice shouted out. Kai swivelled around to see Tyson Granger standing in the doorway that opened up onto the roof. He was waving frantically, trying to catch his attention. "Come back inside! You're gonna get sick staying out here!" the boy yelled, trying to be heard over the loud rumbled of thunder.

Sighing, Kai stood slowly and rotated his head, satisfied when he heard a few clicks. The pressure that had built up in his neck was instantly relieved and after that had been done, the slate-haired teen sauntered over to the door.

Before losing sight of the dark sky and the bright flashes of lightning, Kai turned towards the mountains off to the East. A boom of thunder crackled across the sky and two names escaped from his lips in a hushed whisper.

"Tala…Bryan…"

_Don't leave me now..._

**

* * *

**

How was it? I typed up this entire thing in just over an hour! Whoot! Hope you all enjoyed. Please tell me what you thought XD

**-Dancer-**


	9. Don't Leave Me Now

Hey there everyone! I'm so sorry about the two-day wait on this chapter. But I've been caught up with watching the Olympics (NZ hadn't won any medals yet –tear-) and I've recently re-found my walkthrough for Devil May Cry 3 and have been playing it non-stop. I really hope this chapter makes up for the wait.

OMG 100 reviews after only 8 chapters! You guys are the best! 15 reviews for one chapter! Holy shit! My personal best is 17 so far, and that was for a later chapter of IFOF. (Like 20 or something). Thanks so much!

Oh, and one last thing! Thanks to all of you who wished me well in trying to fix my friendship with my best friend. Well, we fixed it! We're fine now XD Yay! Thanks for all your support.

Please disreguard the last chapter's preview. I changed my mind about this chapter, but I am going to go back and change the preview.

Okay, my AN notes are finishing now lol.

Review replies…

aquaanime – hay! Thanks for the review! And you told your friend (who doesn't like Beyblade) and she reviewed it?? Thanks! Who is this friend, by the way? So I can thank her for giving my fic a go XD See above for friendship matters.

the Light Shadow – thanks for reviewing! Sorry, there's not much Bryan in this chapter, but there is a little. You'll just have to read the chapter to find out what Boris does to Tala and Bryan! Enjoy.

Rapunzelle – thanks! Hope you enjoy the chapter. It has Tala and Bryan in it :)

Miako6 – cool! My fic got MP4'd! (Does that make any sense? O.o) Sorry for the wait, hopefully this chapter makes up for it! Enjoy.

totally-bobby-dogz (chapter 1) – thank you! Hope you enjoy the other chapters.

x-Black-Dranzer-x – wow, thanks! I can't believe the support this fic has gotten XD Hope you enjoy the chapter.

shininglake – thank you! Evil Boris strikes again in this chapter…hope you enjoy :D

HimekoSukie – thanks! Sorry for the wait. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Tala and Bry are in this chapter.

StarShinobi – yay, long review! It's alright, I have a stupid Internet too XD Lol, your comment about fish made me laugh! I saw Boris dressed in a fish costume then thrown into the sea. He couldn't swim and drowned…LOL! Thanks! I'm so sorry about the wait! Enjoy.

p power – thanks! I try and update every day, although this time it took me a little longer. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

totally-bobby-dogz – I see you enjoyed the chapters! Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy.

jellybean-kitty – thanks! Sorry for the slow update. Hope you enjoy :D

american farmer – hey! Thanks for the review! Um, bout the evil cliffie…it's this chapter…o.o Oh and about the chapter numbers. That's because the first chapter is the prologue and then it begins Chapter 1, 2, 3…and so on. Thanks for the notice though! Enjoy.

Keight Ylonen – hello!! Congrats on being the 100th reviewer! Do you want a prize? Maybe a oneshot of you choice of pairing? If I could, I'd send The Rasmus albums again XD Your questions are partially answered in this chapter. Enjoy!! OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EMAILING ME THAT CONVERTER WEBSITE!! It's the best!! (Is that how you get all your songs??)

Whoa! 16 (1 for Chap 1, 15 for Chap 8) reviews! Thanks so much! On with the chapter.

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 8: Don't Leave Me Now**

The sky was covered in greying clouds, setting the scene of a gloomy, depressing day. The rumbled of thunder echoed in the sky, following the multi-coloured flashes of lightning. Rain shot from the clouds like bullets, penetrating the air and landing on the ground with splashes.

One lone figure sat under the pouring sky, slate hair clinging to their face and falling into a pair of dark eyes. The figure didn't move an inch; they just stared up to the lightning flashes illuminating the dark shadows of the hills on the horizon.

The figure was dressed in a pair of black jeans. A silver chain hung from a belt loop and curved into a pocket, the silver metal shining brightly when the lightning flashed. A slightly loose dark grey muscle top was plastered to the figure's body, showing off an impeccable chest and stomach, the muscles rippling slightly as the figure moved with the wind.

No jacket was present near or on the figure. The figure, obviously a male, was shivering slightly as he let the rain pound relentlessly into his body, soaking him to the bone.

A single roar of thunder raced across the sky, frightening close to where the teen was sitting on the roof of a school. The slate-haired teen jumped a little and wrapped his pale arms around himself in an attempt to warm his body up.

Crimson eyes peered out to the darkening sky, his mind far away from the storm that was approaching. Two of his friends were missing. They hadn't been seen for three days and he was officially worried.

Kai Hiwatari was officially worried.

Letting out a shuddering breath, Kai wondered what had happened to Tala and Bryan. It wasn't like them to suddenly disappear like they had. Both teens were adamant about going to school, maintaining their grades and showing up for training. To suddenly not show up for any of them for three days was unheard of.

Having woken up from a one-week coma, Kai had finally been allowed to go back to school. Even though it had only been three days since his awakening, he felt fine. The only thing that was giving him any trouble was his asthma.

What confused him though, was that none of the doctors had picked up the on the large welts covering his back and right arm. Knowing his grandfather, the man probably would have bribed or threatened the doctors to not say a word. Or else, the doctors were incompetent fools who couldn't do their job properly. Kai wasn't in a hurry to ask his grandfather or the doctors about it.

He hadn't gone home yet. Since leaving the hospital, he had stayed with the annoying brat Tyson and Tyson's grandfather at their dojo. The navy-haired teen hadn't asked why he hadn't gone home and Kai was happy with not explaining. He supposed that he would have to go home sometime in the next few days, though. Otherwise his grandfather would probably issue a nationwide manhunt for his 'missing grandson.'

He breathed in, wincing as the air hitched in his throat.

_Damn asthma. Why the hell did it have to be so serious?_

Hoping that it was a one-off thing, Kai let the breath out and groaned inwardly as the breath came out in a wheeze. Pulling a hated contraption out of his pocket, Kai took two long drags whilst pushing the white button at the end. The foul tasting medicine flowed into his lungs instantly, opening his airways and letting the air flow better.

Pulling the inhaler away from his mouth, Kai wiped the end and placed it back in his pocket. How he hated that thing. It signified a weakness; a weakness that couldn't be cured, only relieved and maybe, just maybe, if he was lucky he _might_ grow out of it. Somehow, he really doubted that.

"Kai!" a loud, intruding voice shouted out. Kai swivelled around to see Tyson Granger standing in the doorway that opened up onto the roof. He was waving frantically, trying to catch his attention. "Come back inside! You're gonna get sick staying out here!" the boy yelled, trying to be heard over the loud rumbled of thunder.

Sighing, Kai stood slowly and rotated his head, satisfied when he heard a few clicks. The pressure that had built up in his neck was instantly relieved and after that had been done, the slate-haired teen sauntered over to the door.

Before losing sight of the dark sky and the bright flashes of lightning, Kai turned towards the mountains off to the East. A boom of thunder crackled across the sky and two names escaped from his lips in a hushed whisper.

"Tala…Bryan…"

_Don't leave me now…_

* * *

Tala woke with a start, gasping for breath and shaking. Sweat dripped down his brow to fall over his blue eyes and hit the floor with small splashes. A violent shiver wracked his abused body and Tala reached up with a hand and placed it on his forehead. Feeling the unnatural heat radiating, he groaned. A fever. That was the last thing he needed.

Looking over to where Bryan was lying, Tala couldn't suppress the gasp of horror that the sight gave him. The lilac-haired boy was curled up in a ball, moaning in pain. A widening circle of deep, red liquid was forming around his body.

Bryan was pale – unnaturally so – and Tala felt a sinking feeling arrive in his stomach. He wasn't…was he? He couldn't be.

"B-Bryan?" The redhead stammered. His voice was barely audible, just above a whisper. Even if the boy was fully conscious, he probably wouldn't have even heard him.

_How long have we been here? It seems like forever. I wonder how Kai's doing. Fuck…he better be okay…_

"Come on, Bry. Wake up…" His voice was a little stronger this time and as he spoke, the teen pushed himself into a slight sitting position using his elbows.

Tala cursed silently when there was no response from the other teen. Instead, a loud bang reverberated through the dark room. Looking over to the door, Tala saw the man responsible for inflicting their injuries standing in the doorway.

Boris' dark eyes glittered in the little amount of artificial light coming from a single flaming candle suspended high on one wall. Tala could see the hunger for blood showing through in those dark orbs and he unwillingly shuddered. Boris Balkov was the only person in the world who had managed to install such fear upon him. Not even Voltaire Hiwatari could do that.

The reason for that was that Boris tortured anyone and took pleasure in it. Voltaire only had eyes for his grandson. He had never touched anyone in the Abbey, only Kai. If someone had needed punishing, the Russian tycoon had let Boris loose on them like he was a rabid dog and the students were his bones.

"So, young Tala…" began the man in his sleazy voice. "How are you feeling today?"

Tala didn't say a word as Boris entered the small room, shutting the door behind him with a loud crash. The redhead heard the mechanical locks entering into place and a sliver of fear ran the length of his body. Boris had never locked him and them in the room together. The door had always been left unlocked – but shut – in case something happened.

_Oh shit. What's he planning?_

"Are you going to talk today, Tala? Or will I have to punish you some more?"

Swallowing the fear, Tala didn't move a muscle. He wasn't going to give into the man, even if it cost him his life. He slipped a glance over to where Bryan lay unconscious. Tala just hoped that the purple-haired monster left the cancer-ridden boy alone.

"Hmmm…looks like I'm going to have to resort to _other_ measures today." Tala watched on wearily as Boris talked to himself, glee slipping into his tone. Something was definitely up.

A sudden rustle of clothing caught his attention and the redhead looked up to see Boris put a hand behind his back. Moments later, a gleaming silver gun was securely placed in his hand. The gun was pointed straight at him.

_Fuck!_

"Well, Tala Ivanov, how do you like my _other_ measure?" Boris licked his lips and Tala grimaced. The man deserved to be locked up in a mental institution.

"Nothing to say, again? This is your last chance, Ivanov."

A moment of silence followed the man's statement and Tala watched on as Boris grinned. The grin was maniacal; it was satanic in its own right.

"Fine. Goodbye."

Eyes wide, Tala Ivanov stared as Boris switched the safety off. It resounded around the room loudly. A spindly finger looped around the trigger and Tala took in a shuddering breath as the trigger was pulled back.

…_Life Is Like A Boat In The Bottle_

_Try To Sail, You Can't With No Air_

_Day By Day It Only Gets Harder_

_Try To Scream But Nobody Cares_

_Through The Glass You See The Same Faces_

_Hear The Voices Play Fade A Drum_

_When Your Life's A Boat In A Bottle_

_You're Surrounded, Drifting Alone_

_Don't Leave Me Now…_

_..._

BANG

...

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Don't kill me! Please review.**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 9: Stay Another Day, With Me**

...

BANG

...

The body slumped sideways, blood pooling from the head wound. The thick, dark red liquid trailed between two open eyes staring lifelessly into eternal darkness, and dripped onto the ground with small splashes. The blood formed a slowly growing puddle at the body's final resting place.

Silence followed the gunshot and one figure smirked evilly and left, the door opening and closing with a quiet clang. Only two people remained.

_Finally. After so long and so many attempts…he is finally dead._

_I…win…_

* * *

**Well? Please don't kill me! I told you at the beginning that the evil cliff-hanger was coming up! Please leave a review.**

**-Dancer-**


	10. Stay Another Day, With Me

Hi there! First off, THANK YOU for all your amazing comments! Secondly, YAY NZ won a gold medal at the Olympics in the women's double skulls! :D I'm so happy now. (We also won two bronze medals in the rowing, at he time of typing this chapter). GO NZ!

Umm…please don't kill me? The beginning of this chapter may not be as ANYONE would have predicted, so please don't kill the author! –pleads-

Story stats: Words – 22,470. Reviews – 115. Chapters – 9. Favourites – 24. Alerts – 28. Thanks!

Review replies…

Rapunzelle – OMG you reviewed only 8 MINUTES after I updated! Whoa :O Hope this chapter is up to standard :)

x-Black-Dranzer-x – hehe, everyone thinks that it was an evil cliffie. I pride myself in my cliffies! Hehe. Thanks for the wonderful comments! Enjoy…and please don't maim the author! Heheheh…

d1bontemp – thanks for the review! Lol, not much to say, but ENJOY!

pinkjasmin90 – wow! –blushes- thanks for you review! Lol, I try to update daily. Although, sometimes it takes a day or two. Hope you enjoy :)

StarShinobi – wow, man you are intuitive! Lol, I think you're the only one who like the cliffie :D Thanks for all your kind words and hopefully this chapter doesn't disappoint!

the Light Shadow – can I help kill the monster?? Teehehe. Thanks for reviewing, hope you enjoy the latest chapter XD

HimekoSukie – hopefully! You'll have to read on and find out XD No, thank YOU for reviewing! Enjoy :)

aquaanime – faints from shock? Uh, oh…Thanks for reviewing though! Hehe. Hope you like this chapter too!

Miako6 – you might be secretly surprised bout your second fave character…hehehe. Sorry bout the wait for the chapter. Hope you enjoy!

Secret Thought – hehe, Boris is definitely a mean person. Hope you enjoy the chapter and thanks for reviewing!

XBenihimex – OMG thank you so much for reviewing! I hear that you don't really like Beyblade, but you still read AND REVIEWED my fic!? I am so flattered! THANK YOU! Hope you enjoy this chapter too :D

jellybean-kitty – sorry for the wait! Thanks for the kind words! Btw, I'm getting round to reading the rest of Forgiven, but I've been working lots, so I haven't had the time. I will get round to it though! Enjoy XD

FlamingIce94 – LOL! Thanks for the review! Also, thank you for saying all those nice things about my description :) Hope you enjoy the chapter!

pheonix80 – wow, so many reviews! Lol, can I help!! Thanks for the review, hope you enjoy!

.EverLastingFun. – thank you! Hope this was a fast enough update for you! Also, thanks for the review for This One!! Enjoy :D

OMG another 15 reviews! You guys are the best!

Note: Good luck to the NZ rugby team; the All Blacks, who are playing in South Africa tonight! Hope they win!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 9: Stay Another Day, With Me**

…

BANG

…

The body slumped sideways, blood pooling from the head wound. The thick, dark red liquid trailed between two open eyes staring lifelessly into eternal darkness, and dripped onto the ground with small splashes. The blood formed a slowly growing puddle at the body's final resting place.

Silence followed the gunshot and one figure smirked evilly and left, the door opening and closing with a quiet clang. Only two people remained.

Finally. After so long and so many attempts…he is finally dead.

_I…win…_

--

Kai smirked as the scream of agony echoed through the room he had just left. He could picture the look on Tyson's face as he stared at the television screen. The navy-haired boy's mouth would be hanging wide open, his eyes bulging out of astonishment. His hands would be clenched into fists and he would be shaking with barely-repressed anger.

"KAI!" came the angered cry from behind the shut door. The Russian teen rolled his eyes and stepped slightly to the right as the door slammed open and he was greeted with a very flustered, very angry Tyson Granger.

"How…" he panted. "How could _you_ beat _me_!?"

The slate-haired blader shrugged. Tyson sure was a sore loser.

It was after school and Kai had gone back to Tyson's when Tala and Bryan didn't show up once again. He was worried; he had been all day. Obviously, Tyson had noticed it and had challenged him to a video game. Kai couldn't remember the name of said game, but in the end, Tyson's undefeated streak had been left smouldering in ruins as his avatar lay on the virtual concrete, a bullet in it's skull.

"Don't shrug your shoulders at me!" Tyson screamed, pointing a finger angrily at him. "You said you'd never played the game before! How could _you_ win!?"

Kai opened his mouth to answer when a shrill ringing echoed throughout the house. Both teens turned at the sound and moments later Kai watched Tyson scramble down the hall to where the phone was situated.

"Ah, you guys okay?" spoke another voice. Kai looked back over to the door and rolled his eyes at the worried expression visible on Max's face. The worry disappeared when he saw Kai seemingly in one place. "Wheph, you're okay then," the blond sighed, wiping a hand over his forehead.

Rolling his eyes again, Kai stopped stiff when Tyson returned into view, the cordless phone gripped in his hand. Crimson eyes narrowed at the apprehension filtering through Tyson's gaze. Who was on the phone? He found out soon enough.

"Kai…" Tyson began, unsure of how he was going to say it. "It's for you. It's…it's your grandfather."

Kai sighed inwardly. Of course the hesitation and apprehension made sense now. Tyson had always been afraid of his grandfather. The man _was _intimidating even at his most timid times.

He snatched the phone out of Tyson's hand and placed the white contraption to his ear. Heavy breathing came down the line and the Russian teen hesitated slightly. He wondered if his grandfather was angry…

"Kai?" the gruff voice spoke. Kai couldn't detect any hint of anger…yet.

"Yeah?" he answered flippantly, not caring at the moment. The old man was probably going to tell him to come home. To be honest, he was surprised that it had taken Voltaire this long to demand him return.

"You are to return home this very instant, Kai. I have been allowing enough, letting you stay with that hyperactive friend of yours. I will not tolerate any more disobedience from you." Voltaire's tone was final and Kai let out a sigh.

He glanced over to see a set of deep blue and a set of light blue eyes staring at him. Although the two boys were trying to hide their actions, they were clearly failing.

"I'll be right over as soon as I get my things together," he said in a clipped tone, running a slim hand through his slate locks.

"Good," came the reply. Kai was about to press the 'end call' button on the cordless phone when his grandfather's cold tone came over the line again. "Plus," he added. "I have a surprise for you that I know you will love."

Kai went cold as the monotonous tone blared through the earpiece. He stared at the phone in his hand, dread filling his entire being. What was his grandfather up to? He didn't like the last words Voltaire had spoken. There was something evil hidden beneath those words. Nothing good was going to come from returning to the mansion, that much Kai knew.

"Kai?" Tyson's voice invaded his thoughts. Handling the phone back to the Japanese teen, Kai silently stalked out of the room and towards his makeshift bedroom. He took a good, long look around the cupboard-sized room, knowing that it was most probably his last time at the Granger's…ever.

He moved over to the wardrobe and opened the sliding door. Heaving in a deep breath, the teen proceeded to take all the clothes off the hangers and place them into a black duffel bag that he had placed on the end of the bed. Most of the clothes were brand new, as he had been made to go shopping by Tyson's grandfather as soon as he had arrived.

Not noticing as Tyson and Max opened the door and watched as he packed all his belongings, Kai continued on with the job at hand. A few minutes later, everything was packed into the black bag, which wasn't even bulging.

"Kai?"

Whipping around at the sound, the crimson-eyed boy saw Tyson and Max standing in the doorway, their eyes wide with confusion.

"My grandfather has asked me to move back into the mansion with him," Kai found himself saying to the two boys. A slight pain ran through his broken wrist. He looked down at the white plaster coating the lower part of his arm and remembered that he was scheduled to have the cast taken off in a few days time.

He said nothing more. Kai stood to his full height of six foot and looked at the teenagers before him. He could see the sadness filling their eyes and wished like hell that his grandfather never met the two. Even though he made himself out to be a cold, heartless prick, he never liked seeing innocent people getting hurt.

"I've got to go," he whispered, forcing his gaze from Tyson and Max. The longer he stayed in the house, the harder it would be to leave. He never thought that only a short while away from his abusive home, that going back would be so hard.

--

Half an hour later, Kai stepped out of the taxi and stood in front of the place, which he called home. The three-story mansion loomed above him, eerie in its entirety. The dark bricks that made the exterior were worn and crumbling in places. Large, darkened windows decorated the dark walls, but even the windows – which were lined in white – did nothing to take away the darkness that seemed to swathe the large house.

The teenager slowly made his way up the cobbled path to the large double front doors. He pushed on one and found that it was unlocked. Shit, that meant that his grandfather was home.

Stepping inside the foyer, Kai looked around to observe the place. It seemed that since his departure over a week before, nothing had changed in the slightest.

"Kai," boomed a loud, authorative voice. Kai looked to the double stairway that lead to the second and third floors and saw his grandfather standing at the second-floor landing. Voltaire Hiwatari was dressed in an expensive black suit, a blood red tie tied around his neck.

The Russian teen dropped the black bag on the floor, knowing that a maid would have it brought to his room at some stage. He ambled up the stairs to end up next to his grandfather.

"Follow me," was all that was said. Kai frowned, but did as he was told and walked behind the giant man that was his only living relative.

It took a few minutes, but eventually they arrived at a door, which Kai remembered that he had never been allowed to go in. When he was younger, the bluenette had always tried to find a way in, but he had always been caught before succeeding. Why was he being allowed in now?

Voltaire pulled out a single key and slid it into the lock. Turning it to he left, the lock opened with a slight click and the Russian man pushed the door open slowly.

Kai frowned and looked into the darkness beyond the threshold of the door. His grandfather reached in and flicked on a light and Kai felt his world crumble before his very eyes.

_No, no, no…no!_

There, in the middle of the chamber-like room lay two figures. Blood covered their barely-clad bodies and their hands and feet were bound.

Kai could hear the shallow breathing coming from the room and stared in shock. _What? How? Why?_

"Tala…Bryan…"

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 10: When You're Sad, And No One Knows It.

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

…

BANG

…

Tala gasped as the bullet slammed into the concrete wall beside his head. Breathing shallow and fast, he desperately tried to calm his heart down enough to let him think properly. Why hadn't Boris killed him?

The redhead blinked, wondering why Boris wasn't taunting and mocking him. He looked over to see the monster leaning over Bryan's still form. Worry settled in his mind as Boris Balkov stood up, a strange look falling over his features.

Then Boris smiled and walked over to the door. Tala caught a gleeful glint in his eyes as the door shut and the worry in his mind increased tenfold.

Looking over to where Bryan lay, a horrifying realisation jolted him out of his slight stupor.

_Bryan isn't breathing…_

**

* * *

**

Please don't kill me! Please leave a review and I'll try to update as soon as I can! Thanks!

**-Dancer-**


	11. When You're Sad, And No One Knows It

Hey everyone! Sorry for the wait, but things aren't going to well at home. I went and saw the new Batman move today though. Heath Ledger was amazing in it and I give my condolences to his family and friends after his passing.

OMG my copy of the new Dark-Hunter book _Acheron_ arrived today!

I leave to go to Auckland next week! YAY! I'm going there for my 18th and I'm going to see Panic! At The Disco! YAY!!

Thank you so much for all the reviews! I have reached my personal best! Thank you! Oh and could you please give me feedback on my portrayal of Boris? Some of it has stemmed from Heath Ledger' portrayal of the Joker. Thanks!

Review replies…

x-Black-Dranzer-x, the Light Shadow, aquaanime, jellybean-kitty, Rapunzelle, Cyborgshi, grimnessreaper, Secret Thought, shininglake, pheonix80, HimekoSukie, Keight Ylonen, .EverLastingFun., p power, american farmer, Ugawa.

15 reviews for chapter 9!

Sorry for no personal replies, but I was running out of time to get this posted! They will resume next chapter, promise!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 10: When You're Sad, And No One Knows It**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

…

BANG

…

Tala gasped as the bullet slammed into the concrete wall beside his head. Breathing shallow and fast, he desperately tried to calm his heart down enough to let him think properly. Why hadn't Boris killed him?

The redhead blinked, wondering why Boris wasn't taunting and mocking him. He looked over to see the monster leaning over Bryan's still form. Worry settled in his mind as Boris Balkov stood up, a strange look falling over his features.

Then Boris smiled and walked over to the door. Tala caught a gleeful glint in his eyes as the door shut and the worry in his mind increased tenfold.

Looking over to where Bryan lay, a horrifying realisation jolted him out of his slight stupor.

_Bryan isn't breathing…_

Many things ran through his mind at the sight of his friend lying there, pale and covered in blood. The noticeably absent rising of his chest that associated with breathing was a shock to the system and Tala could feel the shock rising within himself.

He stared, wide-eyed at Bryan and felt his heart skip a beat when Boris' heinous purple hair suddenly came into view. The man looked over to Bryan and smirked, his eyes flashing dangerously.

Tala felt anger surge and boil in his blood. Boris was a sick, twisted psychopath. The monster could maim and kill an innocent boy and think it was just a childish game that was played at birthday parties.

"You…you" he stumbled, unable to form the words as the anger and pain grew to astounding levels. The redhead had always tried to keep his anger in check when dealing with Boris, but now…now the man had gone too far.

_Bryan can't be dead…He can't be!_

"Me what?" the sarcastic and mocking tone spoke the volumes of enjoyment that Boris was experimenting. "Come on, Tala," he teased. "You've got to tell me more than that!" The man leant in close, smirking and brushing his lips past Tala's ear to whisper into it.

Tala recoiled as he felt Boris' breath caress his ear. "You think he's dead?" There was a pause. "He's not dead. Yet."

The Russian man pulled away with a cackle and Tala felt the shock of the past few minutes finally catch up with him. His body started to shake and he found himself gasping for breath. Truth be told, Boris Balkov scared the living shit out of him.

Boris sighed and rolled his eyes and Tala felt himself being lifted off the ground by two hands. Moments later he came face to face with his tormentor. Boris' cold, deep grey eyes bored into his own ice blue ones and it was then that Tala realised the full extent of Boris Balkov's insanity.

The man's eyes were a deep grey in colour and were burning with a twisted, sadistic pleasure. Tala could see that Boris was enjoying the amount of pain and fear he was inflicting, taking some kind of pathetic pleasure from it all. The light shining in the depths of his eyes flared and died down at moments that were obvious excitement and disappointment.

Another thing Tala noticed was the man's competence to bring out a smirk more chilling than that of Kai Hiwatari. Whereas Kai's was more to get people to leave him alone, Boris Balkov's was a smirk to install fear and anxiety into the people around him. His lips twisted upwards seemingly way too far for a normal mouth and they twisted slightly, making the smirk look even more evil.

"Well, well, well…" Boris noted, his mouth twisted in said smirk. "Look's like young Tala has a fear…of me!" The man cackled again and Tala couldn't help but wince. He just wanted to get out of the room.

A sudden push and the redhead found himself on the floor, head cracking against the concrete hard. Stars swum before his vision and he groaned as a pounding headache battered at his skull.

"Goodbye, Tala. Voltaire will be along later to pick up you and the other brat." The words were said with no emotion what so ever. "Hopefully the brat isn't dead then," Boris mused quietly to himself in an amused tone. "Voltaire will be most displeased if he is."

Tala let out a shot of indignation and stared at Boris, mouth open wide, as the man ignored him and stalked out of the cold room. The door slammed shut, sealing the two boys in the room once more.

The redhead rushed over to his friend, shaking the pale-haired teen. He bit his lip in frustration when Bryan didn't wake.

_Oh god…please Bry, don't give up. _

On another note, Tala glared at the shut door. His thoughts drifted slightly to Boris Balkov. _I swear on Bryan's life that I will be the one to kill you, Boris Balkov. Whether it be by a gun, knife or my own bare hands, I _will_ be the one to end your pathetic life. _

--

**Present time…**

Kai frowned and looked into the darkness beyond the threshold of the door. His grandfather reached in and flicked on a light and Kai felt his world crumble before his very eyes.

_No, no, no…no!_

There, in the middle of the chamber-like room lay two figures. Blood covered their barely-clad bodies and their hands and feet were bound.

Kai could hear the shallow breathing coming from the room and stared in shock. _What? How? Why?_

"Tala…Bryan…"

"I hope you like your surprise, Kai."

Kai ignored his grandfather and stared at the chaotic mess in complete anguish.

Both Tala and Bryan were bound with what looked like plastic wire. Their wrists were rubbed raw and blood seeped from small cuts where they would have tried to escape the binds. Both were very pale and Tala had blood running into his left eye from a deep gash on his forehead.

Bryan was lying very still, too still for Kai to like. There was a lot of blood coating Bryan's torn clothes, but Kai had a sinking feeling that it wasn't all his as the bluenette couldn't see any major wounds on the boy from his vantage point.

Abruptly, Kai found his right arm being grabbed and twisted behind him. The healing bone protested sharply and the pain intensified tenfold. Shit, he was supposed to be getting the cast off soon. If his grandfather did anything to damage the bone, it would be on for a hell of a lot longer.

"Get in there!" His grandfather boomed, shoving him inside. Gasping as he stumbled, Kai hit the floor, hard. His head hit the floor – albeit not very hard – and Kai found himself seeing stars for a moment

As his vision cleared, Kai heard a whistling sound and frowned. The sound became apparent as a steel-toed boot came into contact with his ribs. He chocked on a breath and a little spit came flying from his mouth to land on the floor in front of him. Okay, his grandfather was _angry_.

There was one final kick before Kai heard his grandfather storm off and slam the door behind him. Lying on the floor in pain, the bluenette finally managed to gather enough strength to look over at his two friends.

"Tala? Bryan?"

Surprisingly Kai's gaze met a pair of blue eyes. Had Tala been awake for the whole thing?

"Hey, Kai…" Tala's voice was weak, strained even and Kai thought he heard a slight waver. Was Tala crying?

"Tala? What's wrong? Apart from the obvious…" Kai asked, afraid to hear the answer.

There was a moment of silence before Tala spoke again and when he did, crystalline tears dropped from ice-blue eyes to make trails down a pale and bloodstained face. "Bryan…Kai, Bryan's dying…"

Kai couldn't have been more shocked had he been dipped in a lake in the middle of Russia on the coldest day of winter. He felt as though his lungs were closing up, his body forgetting how to breathe.

"What?" he whispered. "How…why? What happened to you two?"

"It was Boris…"

Kai needed no more words. He was going to kill the motherfucker!

A sudden gasp caught both of their attention and the two Russian teens looked over to where Bryan was struggling to breathe. The pale boy's chest was heaving in and out, trying desperately to draw a breath.

"I'm…sorry…" Bryan whispered. His lilac eyes opened slightly and gazed around the room. The boy's eyes were fogged over and Kai bit back a sob as he realised that one of his closest friend's time was up.

"Bry…no…"

"Don't…" Bryan shivered groggily. "Don't…feel…bad for…me. I'm no-not…in…any p-pain…it…doesn't h-hurt…"

Tala screamed then and Kai averted his gaze from the two teens. He couldn't handle it. Bryan wasn't…he couldn't be! Then the teen spoke again and Kai knew that it was time.

"I'm tired…I'm so…tired…"

Bryan's pale eyes fluttered closed as his last word trailed off into silence. The cancer had finally won the war.

_It just ain't living_

_And I just hope you know_

_That if you say_

_Goodbye today_

_I'd ask you to be true_

'_Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you_

Kai didn't stop the sob that escaped as Bryan closed his eyes for the final time. Tala's tragic scream echoed in his ears long after the vocal agony had died away. He had thought that Bryan was going to be okay. The cancer wasn't _supposed_ to win! Bryan was going to beat it; it was _supposed_ to go away.

Bryan wasn't supposed to go like that. He was meant to live a long, happy life. Not die covered in blood and not aware of anything. If anything, he was supposed to pass with all his friends surrounded around him. It was supposed to be peaceful, not kidnapped by an evil Russian man.

Kai let the tears roll. If one person deserved tears, it was Bryan. The boy had always been there whenever someone needed a friend. The pale-haired boy was always kind and caring to those he cared about and stood up for them no matter what. Why was it always the kind ones that went first?

The bluenette was so caught up in his misery that he didn't notice the door open and in walk his grandfather. He stared teary-eyed at his friend.

…'_Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you…_

_Bryan…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…_

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 11: When Your Heart's Dark And Frozen**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

**One week later…**

Grey clouds loomed overhead, signalling the impending rain. Kai Hiwatari stood amongst many other people dressed in the international colour of mourning. His cobalt blue tattoos stood out against his pale face as he stared at the photo placed on top of the white casket housing his close friend's body.

It had been one week since Kai had been given his 'surprise.' It had been a week filled of tears and beatings from his grandfather. Being back at school had been a mission in itself. Once word got round that Bryan had passed…

He and Tala had talked about what had happened and after much internal debate, Kai finally told someone about what his grandfather did to him. He found out that Tala had already suspected, but apparently hearing it being proved true was even worse than suspecting.

Tala stood to his left, face also pale. A small, white bandage covered the stitches on his forehead and tear tracks marked his gaunt cheeks. The person who had taken Bryan's death the hardest had been Tala and it was showing.

"We are here today to mourn the loss of a great person," the minister was saying in a solemn tone. "For one to battle so hard against such an awful disease for so long is an accomplishment and I am sure that everyone here today is proud of Bryan for this. He held on for as long as he could, but…in the end it became too much. Although his passing is one of tragedy, at least he will not be in any pain. His soul will have passed to a better place where the pain of his disease will not harm him any longer."

Kai saw another tear roll down his best friend's face. He didn't know how easy it was going to be to live without Bryan. Nothing in his life was going well. His grandfather was still abusing him, one of his closest friends was dead and his best friend was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

How much more could they all take? Truthfully, he didn't think that it would be much more before he broke.

**

* * *

**

Please let me know what you thought!

**-Dancer-**


	12. When Your Heart's Dark And Frozen

Hey there everyone! OMG this fic has almost reached 150 reviews and it's only been 11 chapters!! Thank you! Sorry for the wait, but this chapter is longer than usual in response to the amazing support I've had.

Oh, and I passed my best review count! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! Chapter 9 has received **18** reviews! My highest!

Review replies…

Rapunzelle – sorry for killing Bryan! Thank you for reviewing, hope you like the chapter.

StarShinobi – Kai and Tala will be all right, in due time. Thanks for the review and all the kind words! I LOVE cliffhangers, the more suspenseful, the better. Clichéd ones are the best; like the BANG or BOOM of 'gun click' ones hehe. Enjoy.

Miako6 – that's fine! I know how annoying not having Internet can be. It's fine :) Yeah, Bry's dead…There's a little bit of Voltaire in this chapter. Hope you enjoy.

x-Black-Dranzer-x – thanks! Last chapter I tried to dwell into Boris' character a bit more as I have done so with Voltaire. There will be more to come though. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

fawks136 – really? I didn't think that killing Bryan was a very common thing to do? That's why I did it in my other fic IFOF. But oh well, he's dead now…hehe. Thanks for the review! Enjoy.

HimekoSukie – thank you!! Read and you shall receive the answer to your question! Hehe. Don't worry, Boris will receive some kind of punishment for his actions –evil cackle- Enjoy.

shininglake – omg did you? Good tears, bad tears?? I know what you mean :) It was good, but horrible at the same time XD Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

saturnz-moonlit-beauty – OMG YOU ROCK!! Thank you so much for all your help with my novel!! Your words were taken into consideration and they helped so much! If you would be so kind, when I get around to sending you my story, would you be able to do the same?? Thanks for the review and I'm really glad that you like my fic! Enjoy XD

Ugawa – end of the chapter, not of the fic. The fic has 24-25 chapters all up. Thanks for reviewing! About the rape…I've never written a rape scene before and I don't know if I can. I'll see, but there might not be one. Sorry! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

totally-bobby-dogz – thanks! Hope you enjoy the chapter as much as the rest!!

american farmer – don't worry, I'm following this fic to the end! I've just started updating every two days since my life is so hectic at the moment. I'll try to update as quick as possible, but it will probably stay at the every-two-day update. Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy.

jellybean-kitty – thank you! Hope you enjoy the chapter!

Secret Thought – sorry, but no happy death! Don't worry though, Boris' wont have a happy death if he dies XD –evil smirk- Enjoy.

p power – thank you! Hope you enjoy this chapter too XD

pheonix80 – thank you for the review! Hope you enjoy the chapter :)

aquaanime – thank you so much! I tried to make it sad…Hope you like this chapter too. It's the funeral…

Wow, 15 reviews! Thanks!

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 11: When Your Heart's Dark And Frozen**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

**One week later…**

Grey clouds loomed overhead, signalling the impending rain. Kai Hiwatari stood amongst many other people dressed in the international colour of mourning. His cobalt blue tattoos stood out against his pale face as he stared at the photo placed on top of the white casket housing his close friend's body.

It had been one week since Kai had been given his 'surprise.' It had been a week filled of tears and beatings from his grandfather. Being back at school had been a mission in itself. Once word got round that Bryan had passed…

He and Tala had talked about what had happened and after much internal debate, Kai finally told someone about what his grandfather did to him. He found out that Tala had already suspected, but apparently hearing it being proved true was even worse than suspecting.

Tala stood to his left, face also pale. A small, white bandage covered the stitches on his forehead and tear tracks marked his gaunt cheeks. The person who had taken Bryan's death the hardest had been Tala and it was showing.

"We are here today to mourn the loss of a great person," the minister was saying in a solemn tone. "For one to battle so hard against such an awful disease for so long is an accomplishment and I am sure that everyone here today is proud of Bryan for this. He held on for as long as he could, but…in the end it became too much. Although his passing is one of tragedy, at least he will not be in any pain. His soul will have passed to a better place where the pain of his disease will not harm him any longer."

Kai saw another tear roll down his best friend's face. He didn't know how easy it was going to be to live without Bryan. Nothing in his life was going well. His grandfather was still abusing him, one of his closest friends was dead and his best friend was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

How much more could they all take? Truthfully, he didn't think that it would be much more before he broke.

"Kai?" a voice whispered beside him. Crimson eyes looked over to meet a pair of electric blue and saw the face of Max Tate, the blonde boy who was always on a sugar high. The boy's eyes were rimmed in red and heavily bloodshot, tears still spilling down his tanned cheeks.

"Hi, Max," he whispered back, attention still half on the minister speaking about his deceased friend. Max had been as close to Bryan as Bryan would allow a person who was neither he nor Tala. Somehow the blonde, baby-faced teen had grown on the older, stoic male and eventually had formed into something resembling a friendship. If there was someone who rivalled their anguish over their loss, it was Max.

"May we all pray together…" Kai heard the minister's words flowing through the rising wind, "for the journey that Bryan's soul is about to embark on to a place called Heaven where his soul will finally be able to be free and rid of the awful disease that took him from us. May his soul arrive peacefully and without many trials along the way."

Kai closed his eyes as the man spoke on about the journey to Heaven; a place where Bryan would finally be able to rest in peace. As the minister continued to voice the wondrous things about Heaven, Kai found himself disliking this Heaven place more and more.

Supposedly, Heaven was a place where the souls of the passed lived in peace and tranquillity for the rest of eternity. But how the minister spoke about Heaven, it made it look like Earth was the worst place to live. Kai didn't understand how Heaven could be such a wondrous place when all your friends and family – if you had any – were left on Earth to mourn your passing? Why would _anyone_ want to leave a world where at least _one_ person cared about them to go to a place that hadn't even been proven to exist?

(AN: sorry to interrupt the fic, but I need to state that the views Kai has expressed just now are not those of my own. True, I am an atheist and these views _lightly_ reflect my beliefs. However, on Kai's part I think that he's had such a hard life and when he finally finds a few people who do care about them, they die. He just thinks that going to Heaven is overrated. Please don't take any of Kai's views to heart if you are a believer).

As Kai stared over the black-clad people to where the minister was standing next to a large, framed photo of Bryan, he caught sight of the last man he wanted to see. Freezing, he found his own crimson eyes staring into those of his grandfather. How had his grandfather found him? He hadn't told Voltaire that school was out for the day for Bryan's funeral.

Snapping his gaze from his grandfather, Kai felt the world tilt around him as his mind drifted to the past. Everything went a blinding white before fading into oblivion and seconds later, he found himself reliving one of the most horrifying moments of his life and also one of his best.

(Warning: this is quite graphic).

_Overly large crimson eyes peered up from beneath slate bangs at his grandfather, a look of complete wonder and amazement etched on his child features. Dressed in a pair of black jeans and grey long-sleeved t-shirt with a blue t-shirt over top, the young boy looked adorable. A silver chain hung around his neck with a dark red pendant clasped near his throat. In the shape of a bird, the pendant seemingly glowed as the light hit it directly._

_In the boy's right hand hung a small, stuffed toy. It was a bird also; it's feathers golden in colour with red streaked through. The head of the bird flopped to the side as the boy gripped it's neck, the neck itself having been worn down from so much handling. _

_In front of the child stood a tall, imposing man. His black hair was greying at the front and his cold and calculating grey eyes stared down at the boy. He was dressed in a formal, black suit with a deep red tie. His facial expression was grim and a scowl marred his features. _

"_Kai," the tall man boomed and Kai peered up from beneath his dark eyelashes and slate hair to look at the man who scared him the most in the entire world. "Today is the day that everyone will know who Voltaire Hiwatari's heir is!" A maniacal laugh erupted from his lips and Kai shrunk back, scared. _

"_Scared?" Voltaire sneered. Kai froze as his grandpa leant down and placed a large hand on his cheek. Feeling the roughness of his grandpa's hand on his smooth flesh scared him even more and he whimpered, trying to back away. He didn't like it when his grandpa touched him. _

_The small boy heard a low growl only moments before the same hand came smashing down onto his cheek. Stunned and hurt, Kai was flung onto the floor as the sound of the slap resounded throughout the room. Cheek stinging painfully, Kai bit his bottom lip as it trembled and the tears poured from his eyes. The tears trailed over the throbbing cheek, stinging as they travelled over the small opened cut._

"_Gr-Grandpa…" he whimpered, sobbing lightly. He knew that his grandpa didn't like crying, so he tried his hardest not to. But it hurt so much…_

"_Shut up, you impudent brat!" _

_At those words, even the barely turned seven-year-old knew what was about to happen. His Grandpa was going to hurt him for crying again. _

_Another smack hit him in the cheek and he cried out, dropping the stuffed bird on the floor in his shock. Once Kai realised that he had dropped his bird, he crawled towards it, desperately trying to stop the tears._

"_Stop…Grandpa, stop…"_

_A rough hand grabbed at his clothing and the young boy found himself being pushed up against the nearest wall. His breathing coming in sharp gasps, Kai tried to push the hand away, to no avail. _

_Kai coughed as his grandpa pushed him to the wall harder, only holding onto the neckline of his t-shirt. "You are worthless, not fit enough to be my heir. I shall choose someone else to continue on my legacy until you are strong enough to fulfil your destiny. Until then…" A sadistic smirk graced his lips as Kai stared fearfully at his grandpa's face. "Until then, you will be my personal 'stress ball'…"_

_Choking, the slate-haired boy cried out as he was dropped. He hit the floor hard and felt something snap beneath him. Seconds later, a blinding pain erupted from his ankle. He was scared about what his grandpa had said. Before, there had only been Meetings…was it going to get worse? _

_Looking down, Kai stared at his ankle. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with it just by looking, but when he reached down with a small hand to gently prod the appendage, the pain increased tenfold. He screamed and felt hot tears escape his eyes. _

_Biting his lip to try and help with the pain, the small boy looked up with large eyes to his grandpa. Maybe he would help?_

_Maybe not._

"_Get up, Kai." When he didn't move, the boy heard his grandpa's leather shoes thumping on the flooring. "Now!" _

_Screwing his eyes shut, Kai felt his grandpa grab his wrist and haul him off the ground. His hurt ankle burned with pain at the action and he wheezed as his lungs worked harder than normal to account for his fear. _

_A few minutes later, Kai found himself being thrown into a small, windowless room. The darkness seemed to surround and make fun of him as he lay in the dark, whimpering and crying over the pain. He didn't hear the door open and close as his grandpa walked into the room. _

_The only clue that anyone was even in the room was the gentle lifting of his t-shirt. "W-who?"_

_There was no answer, only a strange whistling sound and as soon as the whistling stopped a pain like nothing he had ever felt before ripped into his body. Hot liquid spilled down his back and onto the floor. He barely had time to register what had happened before the same pain lashed out from the same spot on his back. He screamed in agony as the contraption dug a deep groove in his back, spilling even more of his life force. _

_Even though he was only young, Kai knew that loosing too much blood meant you would die. He didn't want to die…_

_"Mummy…Daddy…" he whispered through his tears and pain as the contraption came whistling down again and again. "Help me…"_

_After what seemed an eternity, the searing pain stopped only to be replaced by a sharp throb that filled his entire body. His head lolled as he was hauled upright and through hazy eyes he saw a tall man and a boy standing before him. _

_Blinking sluggishly, he looked upwards to his grandpa who had appeared to his left, eyes cold. _

_An evil smile decorated his mouth and Kai blinked again. When his grandpa spoke, it sounded like everything was under water. _

"_Kai? I would like you to meet one of my dear friends; Boris Balkov and his foster son, Bryan…"_

_Kai opened his mouth to say 'hello' to the man and his son when the world titled sideways and he felt himself falling. Then, everything went dark. _

He didn't even know if Bryan had remembered that day; since later in their lives when they became friends, he had never mentioned anything about his grandfather and his abuse. He had known before dying as Tala had told him about their suspicions.

Kai gasped as someone grabbed onto his arm. Eyes wide, he looked to his left to see Tala staring at him, worried. The redhead's face was startlingly pale and his normally impeccably gelled hair was staring to fall from the normal devil-horn style. His oldest and dearest friend looked like hell.

"You okay?" Tala's hoarse tone reached his ears. Nodding slightly, Kai let his gaze slip to the ground. He hadn't meant to remember. He felt so selfish, remembering his bad past when his deceased friend had experienced just as bad of a past. Then again, that had been the first time he had ever met the lilac-haired boy.

"You know," the other Russian carried on, "we have to say something to everyone soon. Do…do you want to do it together?" Kai heard the hesitation in Tala's voice and Kai fought hard to keep the tears at bay. Tala was scared…he was terrified of facing his one big fear – loosing everyone around him.

Kai let a miniature smile grace his lips and nodded. Tala visibly relaxed a little, knowing that he wasn't going to be alone when facing the people who had come along to mourn for Bryan.

Then the words that Tala had been dreading all afternoon were spoken. "Would Kai Hiwatari and Tala Ivanov please like to say a few words about their friend?"

Kai nodded again and strode silently to the front of the gathering where a small stage had been erected. The Russian teen looked at the crowd before him and his throat closed over momentarily. What the hell was he supposed to say? Everyone gathered at the funeral had known or had heard of Bryan in some point of their life. Most were from school, mourning the passing of a fellow student. But there were others too. Many beybladers from other schools and countries had flown in to attend the funeral.

Bryan had been a world-class beyblader before settling down in their high school. Not many knew it, but he was one of the reigning Russian champions too. His talent in the art of battle tactics and figuring out the opponent's weaknesses. Beyblading had been the one light in a world full of darkness for the lilac-haired boy. Beyblade had been his saviour from a world full of deceit, darkness and corruption.

Taking in a deep breath, Kai faced the gathered people. He didn't really know what to say, but he knew that whatever he spoke would be the truth.

"Bryan Kuznetsov was one of my closest friends," he began, the microphone in front of him projecting his voice to all that was attending.

"To most he seemed cold and uncaring, but Bryan was one of the most caring people I have ever met." What he was saying was completely uncharacteristic of him, but if there was one time to be so, it was now. "The one thing that Bryan loved more than anything else was the sport of Beyblade. He was one of the best. He excelled in battle tactics and figuring out the opponent's weaknesses, which many times were why our school team won the major battles that we did."

Kai stopped and looked to Tala who was staring at him with tears in his eyes. The look in the redhead's eyes spoke of gratitude. Tala continued on from where he had stopped.

"There was one thing that Bryan couldn't figure out how to beat…" Silence followed his statement as everyone realised that Tala was talking about the deceased teen's cancer. "Bryan had been diagnosed with cancer from a young age, about eleven. Even though he knew from so young that he was going to die, he never took pity over the fact or ever asked for it. As far as he was concerned, he was like every other person in the world. After a few years, the…" Tala stumbled on the word. To him, it was the dirtiest swear word he could think of.

"The cancer disappeared after a few years and I thought that everything was going to be okay. How wrong I was. Just after Bryan's sixteenth birthday, he rung me and told me that the cancer was back. At first I thought he was drunk." That elicited a few laughs and chuckles. "But it turned out that it wasn't. The cancer really was back. Ever since then, everything went down hill."

"There are a lot more things I could tell you about Bryan, but I think I would probably take up too much time. I guess there is one thing that I found most amusing about Bry." Tala paused and Kai cocked his head sideways slightly. What was Tala on about?

"You see," Tala began, a strange look falling over his face. He looked almost…happy? "There was this one object that Bryan hid away from all of you. He loved the thing to bits and I swear, he scared the shit out of me for a long time with it."

Kai smirked, knowing exactly what Tala was talking about. He couldn't believe that he had forgotten about it.

"Bryan loved his flamethrower."

There was a pause from everyone as they digested the information and then a loud, happy laugh filled the air. Kai knew what everyone was thinking. He was thinking it himself. Bryan and a flamethrower just…_fit_.

"But Bry's not here anymore and I'm going to miss him like crazy. He was one of my best friends and seeing him waste away like did, almost tore me apart. At least he's not in pain anymore. G-goodbye Bryan. Rest in peace…"

Kai followed Tala down after he had also whispered the hated words. _Rest in peace, Bryan. God knows you deserve a little peace after everything you've been through. _

A single tear rolled down his cheek as he reached his former spot in the crowd. Standing up in front of those people had been hard. There had been a lot of things he had wanted to say to Bryan, but if he had said them…everything would have been given away. He was pretty sure that Bryan didn't want him to bottle everything up, but he couldn't help it.

If anyone found out that the Captain of Bakuten Team A had and was being abused, he would never live it down. He was supposed to be the cold, stoic leader that led the team to victory. He wasn't supposed to be some poor boy that lost his parents at a young age and had been abused by his only living relative for the majority of his life. Unfortunately, that's exactly who he was and Kai wasn't sure how long he could keep up the façade for much longer.

The rest of the funeral service was done in partial silence, one song playing in the background. It had been the teen's favourite song – The Rasmus' new song Living In A World Without You.

_You put me together, then trashed me for pleasure. You used me, again and again. Abused me. Confused me._

Kai froze as the lyrics sunk in. He risked a look at Tala and saw that he was avoiding his gaze. Trembling, Kai sunk to the ground. Why was everything so unfair? What had Bryan done to deserve anything like this? Nothing.

Shivering, the bluenette wrapped his arms around his stomach. A cold wind whipped through the cemetery as the white casket that housed Bryan's body was slowly lowered into the ground. As the casket disappeared from view, Kai felt like something inside him died. He was never going to see Bryan again…

_And the ground below grew colder_

_As they put you down inside_

_But the heartless wind kept blowing, blowing. _

_So now you're gone_

_And I was wrong_

_I never knew what it was like_

_To be alone…_

_BRYAN! _His soul screamed. How was he going to deal with everything? Bryan was dead, his grandfather was still going to kick the shit out of him every chance he got and Tala…Tala looked ready to follow Bryan to the grave.

_Oh god…how am I going to do this?_

He didn't even attempt to wipe away a single tear as it slipped from a crimson eye to roll down his pale cheek and over the cobalt blue tattoo.

_This is my last tear, Bry. I'm making a promise to you that I'll never shed a single tear again. This last tear is for you Bryan. I'll make that bastard pay. I promise. _

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview:

**Chapter 12: Far Away We Wait For Each Other**

Voltaire Hiwatari stared at the bloody form of his grandson lying on the king size bed. The teen's slate hair was matted to his head from the drying blood that also covered half of his face. The brat had actually had enough nerve to insult him! But, oh the boy had paid dearly for it. It had been fun.

Giving Kai one last glance, he stormed out of the room and left the maids to clean up the mess. He had a meeting to attend that was of the utmost importance.

It was then that he heard the doorbell ring. Sighing in frustration, he opened the door to come face to face with three policemen. His eyes widened slightly at the blue-clad men and then put his hands in his jacket pockets.

He had forgotten to clean Kai's blood off his hands…

**

* * *

**

Long chapter for you all! Please leave a review; it would be great to hear from you!

**-Dancer-**


	13. Far Away We Wait For Each Other

OMG YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!! 169 REVIEWS AND **20** FOR LAST CHAPTER!!

I wasn't going to update today as I had a crap day with me and my best friend having another falling out, but I checked my emails and I saw that I had gotten 20 reviews for last chapter! So here, as a reward, is chapter 12!

Review replies… (There's gonna be a lot…o.o)

Tsukiokuhime – O.O (Stares in shock at review). OMG you are the best! Your review made me feel so loved! I hope that this chapter is as good as the last. Thank you and enjoy!

Ugawau – thank you! I'll keep that in mind XD Hope you enjoy the chapter.

StarShinobi – thanks so much! Lol, the BANG cliffie is the best! Hehe, I can just imagine the Fanfiction Cliffie Awards…I wonder which one would win?? Hope you enjoy XD

Baroqueangel – yep I did kill Bryan off in IFOF too…hehe. Thanks so much for the review! I've never heard the song, but it sounds like a sad song! Hope you enjoy chap 12.

pinkjasmin90 – thank you! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

pheonix80 – yep, yep. I so agree with you there! Hope you enjoy and thanks for the review!

saturnz-moonlit-beauty – thank you for such a long review! (I love them lol). About the colour of mourning: I was just stating in general the colour of mourning. I hope I didn't offend anyone by saying that black was it :( Thanks for pointing it out though! I hope you enjoy the chapter as much as the last and thanks for all the kind comments!

shininglake – thank you! He will get his revenge in a round about way XD –evil smirk- Hope you enjoy the chapter!!

x-Black-Dranzer-x – hehe, read on and find out! Thanks for reviewing, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

HimekoSukieu – thanks! I hope you enjoy chapter 12 as much as 11!

grimnessreaper – hehe, you find out what Kai did in this chapter XD Thanks and I hope you enjoy!

Nameless Little Girl – thanks! Hope you like this chapter too :D

FlamingIce94 – thank you! I'm trying to tie everything together somehow :) Enjoy.

Keight Ylonen – I know, I did it again! :( Bryan's gone…again. Lol, DITD is a GREAT song! I listen to it quite a bit (although not as much as TBR and LIAWWU XD). Hope you like this chapter too! (Oh and I'm half way emailing you back XD)

aquaanime – it's all right! You're reading, that's the main thing! Hope you enjoy this chapter too :)

The keeper of lone wolfs – thank you! I really hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the others :D

Miako6 – thank you! Hope you enjoy this chapter XD

jellybean-kitty – thank you! Enjoy.

totally-bobby-dogz – he will…eventually. Lol. Thanks and I hope you enjoy!

american farmer – jerk, yes. Lol. It will be a few chapters yet before he gets what's coming to him though. Thanks and enjoy!

OMG I fit **20** review replies onto only one page! Whoa…so many reviews. Thank you!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 12: Far Away We Wait For Each Other**

Voltaire Hiwatari stared at the bloody form of his grandson lying on the king size bed. The teen's slate hair was matted to his head from the drying blood that also covered half of his face. The brat had actually had enough nerve to insult him! But, oh the boy had paid dearly for it. It had been fun.

Giving Kai one last glance, he stormed out of the room and left the maids to clean up the mess. He had a meeting to attend that was of the utmost importance.

It was then that he heard the doorbell ring. Sighing in frustration, he opened the door to come face to face with three policemen. His eyes widened slightly at the blue-clad men and then put his hands in his jacket pockets.

He had forgotten to clean Kai's blood off his hands…

"Mr. Hiwatari? May we come in?" spoke the lead policeman, his eyes staring intently at him. Voltaire glared back, trying to calm his racing heart down. He had thought he was safe, having been very careful about his actions and the like. But now, he may have condemned himself to a life in prison.

"Of course," he said politely even though on the inside he was seething with rage. Couldn't they have called first? "Just seat yourself in the lounge. I'll be through in a minute after I check on Kai."

One of the policemen cocked his head, unsure. "Check on Kai? Is he all right?"

Voltaire smirked inwardly. Of course he wasn't all right, but they didn't need to know that. "He's feeling a little under the weather, so I've been keeping an eye on him. I think it's just the flu, but the doctor is coming in tomorrow to make sure."

They seemed content with his excuse and Voltaire bowed slightly and strode to the stairs. Part of the lie was true as he was going to check on Kai. However, he was just going to tell the boy to stay upstairs and not make a sound and he was going to thoroughly wash the blood off his hands.

Reaching the second floor landing, Voltaire walked down the red carpet to the large wooden door that was the entrance to Kai's room. There was a 'Do Not Disturb' sign hanging in the middle of the door.

Ignoring the sign, Voltaire pushed the door open to reveal the dimly lit room. Inside, Kai was laying on the king size bed with a maid dressing his wounds. White bandages covered most of his torso and the maid was in the middle of cleaning the rather large slash above his right eye.

As he entered the room, the maid let out a little squeak and dropped the bandage she was holding. Like a mouse, she scuttled to the corner of the room and stood quietly, her hands clasped together behind her back.

Giving the maid a stern nod, he strode over to the bed. Kai's rich crimson eyes were closed and there was a sheen of sweat coating his face and dripping onto the sheets. Voltaire frowned and placed a hand on the boy's forehead. The heat radiating from his grandson's brow startled him a little. How the hell had the boy managed to acquire a fever?

"I want that fever down, now!" he said to the maid in a clipped tone. He needed Kai to be well enough to go to school the next day as the first announcement of the interschool beyblade championships were going to be advertised. Voltaire needed Kai to captain the A Team to ensure that the Hiwatari name was still revered.

It was sad that it had come down to this. Voltaire hated the fact that he needed his weakling of a grandson to make sure that people still trembled in fear at the Hiwatari name. However, as it was, Voltaire had already managed to corrupt the majority of Russian businessmen ad politicians to operate secretly under the BIOVOLT Corporation. It was up to Kai to gather the bladers at his age.

To the world, BIOVOLT was a business set up to train children to be world-class beybladers. That was just the front for the company. Underneath everything, BIOVOLT was actually illegally experimenting on children and sometimes bitbeasts (when they could get their hands on them) to enhance their senses and their body's capabilities.

So far, only a few had worked and now, one of those children was dead. Killed by a measly disease.

Grunting in disgust, Voltaire looked at the red liquid coating his hands. It reminded him that there were five policemen sitting in his living room, waiting to talk to him. He took one last look at his unconscious grandson and left his side to enter the en-suite.

Once inside the pristine clean room, Voltaire opened the cupboard and pulled out a bottle of heavy-duty hand cleaner. Looking through the clear plastic, he saw that the bottle was almost empty. Damn, he was going to have to get one of the maids to get some more.

Squeezing a substantial amount onto his hands, the Russian man placed said appendage under the motion-sensor taps and smirked as the warm water sprayed onto his hands and washed the blood away. He watched as the now pink-coloured liquid flow down the drain; it was the only thing that tied him to the wounds on his grandson and it was currently disappearing down the drain.

Once he was satisfied that the blood was all gone, Voltaire left the bathroom and when he passed the maid tending to Kai he spoke. "You will need to get some more heavy-duty hand cleaner the next time you go shopping."

There was no 'hello,' no 'please,' nothing. He was the employer and she was the employee. There was no need for any pleasantries.

Walking into the living room, Voltaire noticed that the conversation that had been apparent between the policemen ceased abruptly. Suspicious, he sat down in the leather chair opposite them.

"Mr. Hiwatari," the man who had not been present last time spoke. Voltaire had a sneaking suspicion that the man was the Captain. "My name is Captain Karl Luxford and my team and I have been investigating the accident that occurred a few weeks ago involving your grandson, Kai Hiwatari."

Pleased that he knew the Captain's name, Voltaire filed it in the back of his mind for future use. Just in case he needed to be 'taken care of.'

"Please continue, Captain," he said.

Captain Luxford nodded while pulling out a large manila folder with pieces of paper bound inside the covering.

"From the investigation we have performed on the accident on Main Street, we discovered that the two men who were pronounced DOA in fact worked for your company, Mr. Hiwatari."

Voltaire did his best to make his features distort into that of a shocked face. It was at times like this that he was blessed by good acting skills. "They worked for me?" he said, stunned. "Both of them?"

"Yes, both of them. From evidence compiled from witnesses, it seems that the two deceased had been conversing only moments before the crash, seemingly talking like old friends. No one recalls seeing Kai anywhere near the two men, but then no one got a good look into the cars at that time.

I pulled up the records for both men and found nothing out of the ordinary about the two, except for the fact that they both worked for the same company which happened to be your company, BIOVOLT Corporation.

I do not think that this accident was just that, an accident, Mr. Hiwatari. It could have been a deliberate attempt on your grandson's life and we are not prepared to take any risks concerning your or your grandson's well being."

Inwardly Voltaire was screaming in rage. How could they have progressed so far in such a short time? He had looked through Boris' planning and it had been immaculate. No one…_no one_ should have been able to find that both the deceased worked for him. It would have put too much pressure on him and the company!

Yet, here he was. In the very position he had tried so hard to avoid.

The Captain's next words shocked him to the core.

"We would like to place both you and your grandson into protective custody until the matter is sorted."

Voltaire's eyes widened. Protective custody? No! Everything was going downhill too fast for his liking.

"Have a think about it, Mr. Hiwatari," Captain Luxford said, standing. "I'll call again in a few days to hear your answer."

With that, the policemen left and Voltaire finally allowed himself to relax a little. He hadn't missed the suspicious glances both the Captain and one of the other policemen shot him as they left, though. He was going to have to be _very_ careful from now on.

**Earlier that night…**

"You realise that this isn't going to work, right _Grandfather_?" Kai sneered, looking up at said man from his kneeling position on the floor.

Bryan's funeral had been only the day before and ever since, his grandfather had steered clear of him. But tonight…tonight was the night.

Backhanding the boy, Voltaire seethed quietly, but furiously: "Shut up, you imprudent shit!"

Kai let his head roll with the slap, feeling the familiar stinging on his cheek. No doubt, it would swell and bruise spectacularly. Just like usual. He rolled his head back to face his grandfather and saw that Voltaire was _fuming. _

Voltaire's normally stoic eyes were alight with rage, a strange red glow showing through the grey. It wasn't often that Kai saw his grandfather like this and it was one of the only times he actually feared the man. It was as though, like the saying, Voltaire saw red…literally.

"Soon," he disparaged, "the police will figure out what you've been doing to all those kids and they'll find out what you do to _me_. You're not that smart, _Grandfather_ and soon enough, you will go down."

A rather forceful kick landed on his ribs and Kai grunted with pain, doubling over and grasping his stomach. His ribs had barely started healing from the last batch of abuse. The bluenette knew that riling up his grandfather was probably the _worst_ thing he could possibly do, but he couldn't help himself. It was _so much fun_!

He winced as a fisted hand smashed into his jaw, sending him tumbling onto the floor. The dark carpet pressed into his already swelling cheek and Kai felt blood drip from the cut that opened up on his jaw.

Breathing through the pain, the Russian teen picked himself up off the floor to glare at his grandfather. "Is that all?" he taunted, waiting to see Voltaire's reaction. As predicted, the reaction was nothing short of explosive.

Moments later, Kai saw stars as his head slammed back onto the floor. Pain rippled through his body as multiple kicks and punches rained down on his frozen limbs. All he could do was close his eyes wait until the capricious round of blows finished.

_Why do I always do this? Every time I get him angry and then I get hit. Why can't I keep my mouth shut? Oh, that's right. 'Cause it's fun…_

Finally, Kai opened his crimson eyes to see his grandfather's reddened face glaring down at him. His eyes were wide in fury and his nostrils flaring as the elder Russian struggled to contain the emotions running through his body,

Blood covered Voltaire's hands and it wasn't until he saw the red liquid that Kai realised how much he hurt. It felt like at least a few bones has been broken in his grandfather's flurry of kicks and punches.

_Fuck, I'm gonna be bloody sore tomorrow and I bet that he'll make me go to school…_was his last thought before unconsciousness claimed his battered body and mind.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview:

**Chapter 13: I'm Still On That Road To Nowhere**

Staring at the teacher droning on about Pythagoras, Kai chewed at the end of his pen. His head was pounding and the fact that there were stitches hidden under the bandana on his forehead didn't help one bit.

He didn't know why the headache hadn't disappeared, because he was so doped up on painkillers that he shouldn't have been able to feel a thing. Maybe his body was starting to become immune. Maybe his grandfather was going to start stocking Morphine…

"Kai Hiwatari!" Kai snapped his head up to look at the obviously fuming teacher. "Pay attention!"

Sighing, the bluenette nodded slightly and concentrated on the equations written on the whiteboard. He frowned as his vision blurred and the writings disappeared for a few seconds, turning into one big blur.

He blinked; trying to bring everything back into focus and after a few tries everything came back. Kai passed it off as a side affect to the head injury.

Just as he was about to give up on the second question, the intercom crackled to life and the school's secretary spoke over the small speaker attached to the far wall.

"_Good afternoon students. Today at lunchtime there will be a meeting for all members of the Bakuten A and B beyblading Teams concerning the upcoming interschool beyblading championships. Would the captains of the two teams; Kai Hiwatari and Max Tate please report to Stanley Dickenson at the beginning of lunchtime? It is important and you must attend. Thank you, that is all."_

Upon hearing the announcement, Kai realised that he had missed the try-outs for the teams and didn't even know who was on the A or B team.

Well, obviously Max was the captain of the B Team, but what about the others?

It was then that a piece of paper was slipped to him. It was from Tala.

Opening it, he saw the familiar scribble of the redheaded Russian and smirked. On the paper was written:

_A Team: Kai Hiwatari (C), Tala Ivanov, (Co-C), Bryan Kuznetsov, Rei Kon, Tyson Granger, Brooklyn Kingston._

Kai noticed that Tala hadn't scribbled out Bryan's name. He smiled sadly at the thought.

_B Team: Max Tate (C), Michael (Co-C), Lee, Miguel, Johnny McGregor, Julia._

**

* * *

**

Woah, that was a LONG preview…I kinda got carried away lol.

**Please leave a review!**

**-Dancer-**


	14. I'm Still On That Road To Nowhere

OMG you are all the best! 17 reviews for last chapter! I'm terribly sorry about the wait, but first I got hit with a mild writers block and then, when I finally overcome it and finished the chapter, I found that my Internet connection was down! But, finally, here is chapter 13!

Oh by the way, I am going away in two days to Auckland for my 18th and the Panic! At The Disco concert, so I will not be able to update for about five days. I will try to get another chapter up before I leave, but I can't make any promises as I am working tomorrow.

Thanks to all that reviewed!

Rapunzelle, pinkjasmin90, x-Black-Dranzer-x, The keeper of lone wolfs, HimekoSukie, StarShinobi, aquaanime, grimnessreaper, shininglake, pheonix80, american farmer, Cyborgshi, Miako6, jellybean-kitty, Annika Preminyer, totally-bobby-dogz, saturnz-moonlit-beauty.

Sorry for not replying to any reviews! Depending on how things go, I may start to use the review reply button instead of posting them on the chapter. It creates a false chapter length and I heard from somewhere that people have been kicked off the site for replying in chapters…and I really don't wanna get kicked off.

Oh and for anyone who loves the show _Supernatural_, go read the fic _Crushed!_ by _lady of arabia_. It is an awesome fic and I recommend it to everyone!

On with the chapter :D

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

Warnings: Dark(ish) content in this chapter.

**Chapter 13: I'm Still On That Road To Nowhere**

Staring at the teacher droning on about Pythagoras, Kai chewed at the end of his pen. His head was pounding and the fact that there were stitches hidden under the bandana on his forehead didn't help one bit.

He didn't know why the headache hadn't disappeared, because he was so doped up on painkillers that he shouldn't have been able to feel a thing. Maybe his body was starting to become immune. Maybe his grandfather should start stocking Morphine…

"Kai Hiwatari!" Kai snapped his head up to look at the obviously fuming teacher. "Pay attention!"

Sighing, the bluenette nodded slightly and concentrated on the equations written on the whiteboard. He frowned as his vision blurred and the writings disappeared for a few seconds, turning into one big blur.

He blinked; trying to bring everything back into focus and after a few tries everything came back. Kai passed it off as a side affect to the head injury.

Just as he was about to give up on the second question, the intercom crackled to life and the school's secretary spoke over the small speaker attached to the far wall.

"_Good afternoon students. Today at lunchtime there will be a meeting for all members of the Bakuten A and B beyblading Teams concerning the upcoming interschool beyblading championships. Would the captains of the two teams; Kai Hiwatari and Max Tate please report to Stanley Dickenson at the beginning of lunchtime? It is important and you must attend. Thank you, that is all."_

Upon hearing the announcement, Kai realised that he had missed the try-outs for the teams and didn't even know who was on the A or B team.

Well, obviously Max was the captain of the B Team, but what about the others?

It was then that a piece of paper was slipped to him. It was from Tala.

Opening it, he saw the familiar scribble of the redheaded Russian and smirked. On the paper was written:

_A Team: Kai Hiwatari (C), Tala Ivanov, (Co-C), Bryan Kuznetsov, Rei Kon, Tyson Granger, Brooklyn Kingston._

Kai noticed that Tala hadn't scribbled out Bryan's name. He smiled sadly at the thought.

_B Team: Max Tate (C), Michael (Co-C), Lee, Miguel, Johnny McGregor, Julia._

Kai folded the piece of paper into a small, neat square and placed it in the black school bag lying at his feet. Just as he placed the object in his bag, a shrill ring echoed throughout the classroom, signalling the end of the class. He had twenty minutes before he had to meet Mr. Dickenson and Kai stood, wondering what he was going to do.

The answer came only seconds later when Tala grabbed his arm and hauled him out of the room quickly.

"Hey! Tala!" he protested as the redhead dragged him towards the boys' bathroom. When there was no response from the other boy, Kai got angry. "Tala!"

Kai glared at the redhead, pulling hard as he tried to get his arm out of Tala's grip. Unfortunately, that caused the bandages to shift under the pressure and Kai winced as he felt the cut re-open and blood start to flow from the abrasion.

Obviously the teen had forgotten, considering that the wrist he was now pulling at had only been taken out of the cask a few days before. His grandfather had _conveniently_ forgotten as well. That was why the bandages were now securely wrapped around the injured limb.

He immediately stopped tugging and followed the other teen, growling low as he was pulled along quite forcefully. "Shit, Tala!" Kai grimaced as Tala wrenched the bathroom door open and in the process managed to twist his wrist to the right. A sharp pain ran up from his wrist to his elbow and he swore he could feel the blood continuing to pump out of the cut.

Once safely inside the bathroom, Tala ushered the three people in there, out and whipped around to face him. Kai caught the angry look plastered on his features. Tala's blue eyes were flashing dangerously, his mouth curled in an angry frown and his hands were clenched into fists. In all, Tala was _pissed_.

"Wha-" Kai began, shaking Tala's hand off his wrist and brining the injured appendage to his chest, massaging it with his uninjured hand.

"We need to talk," was all Tala said. Kai froze at the blatant words and dropped his wrist, letting the blood fall down his fingers to land in a tiny pool on the white tiled floor. Not saying a word, Kai stared into his best friend's blue eyes, pretty damn sure about what the redhead wanted to talk about.

Two words: Voltaire…Abuse.

"Kai…" the redhead began, dropping his gaze to the bloodying floor. "How bad is it? Really? I want the truth. I've been holding back from saying anything up until this point…but Bryan's gone, Kai and I don't wanna lose another friend just because…" Trailing off, Tala looked up again and Kai had to bite back a gasp. Crystalline tears were welling up in the icy orbs and trailing down a pale face. Each droplet seemed to hold so much anguish; Kai couldn't help but gape at the sight.

He stumbled over what to say. "Tala…I…"

"Please Kai…"

Those two words hit Kai like a ton of bricks. He had rarely ever heard the word 'please' being uttered from Tala Ivanov and when it was spoken, it meant business. Kai knew for a fact that all of the children and teenagers associated with BIOVOLT had trouble voicing their emotions, especially Tala, Bryan, two others and himself. It had been drilled into them ever since they were young that emotions were for the weak.

Kai knew differently now. He knew that emotions were not weak, but he still hid them from his grandfather in a bid to maybe hurt a little less the next day. So far, his tactics had worked.

"What do you want to know?" Kai asked as he pushed his back against the nearest wall and slid down until he was sitting with his knees pushed up against his chest. Wrapping his arms around his knees, the bluenette sighed.

Before Tala answered, Kai watched the teen walk over to the door and grip the lock. Twisting it sideways with a click, the Russian enigma realised what his friend was doing. Now, no one could interrupt them. Thankful for the gesture, Kai let a small smile slip onto his features. Talking about his 'problems' at school in the boys' bathroom was not his ideal place to talk about certain things, but it was going to have to do as Tala looked like he wasn't going to move an inch until everything he wanted – or didn't want to hear – was said.

"I want to know everything," Tala spoke in a hushed voice. "How long he's being doing it for, what he does, why he does it. _Everything_. I don't wanna lose you too, Kai."

Running a hand through his slate hair, the Russian teen heaved in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. Why was Tala being so difficult? _I suppose, he has had a week or two to get used to the idea, but why can't he see that I don't want to talk about it? It's too hard…_

"I…I can't Tala," he murmured, averting Tala's gaze. "It's…"

Kai stopped, his voice trailing off into nothing as thoughts swirled around in his mind. For some reason, the haze that had been settling over his thoughts for the past few weeks disappeared, leaving everything crystal clear.

The pounding in his head grew to an almost unbearable level as he was reminded of every ache and pain dealt to him daily. It was surprising that no one had ever noticed the bruising, bandages or the unsteady walk he often had when his grandfather hit him too hard in certain places – like his legs.

He knew that he had to be very immaculate when covering up the wounds and he was forever running out of the girly shit that was used to cover their faces. Of course, he never used it to look pretty, but to hide the horrendous bruising that sometimes covered the uncovered parts of his body, including his face.

One of the only times Kai had ever stood up to his grandfather had been when the elder man had hit him particularly hard on his cheekbone. The next day, a massive and ugly purple bruise marred the cheek. It had stretched from just under his eye and over the three tattoos to his jaw line. In the end he had stayed home from school, claiming to be sick, until the bruise faded enough to be hidden by the tattoos.

When using the foundation on his face, Kai had found out fairly quickly that he had to be extra cautious around the tattoos. If he got even a _smidge_ of the liquid crap on the fins, it was noticeable. In the end, the teen had resorted to making a stencil to outline the markings and applying the make up that way.

Since then, no one had ever had any clue of what was going on behind the doors of the Hiwatari mansion.

--

Tala watched as Kai sighed and ran a hand through his slate hair. The pain reflected on his face killed Tala. He hated it when things went wrong, especially when they included his friends. God forbid, any of them got hurt or died.

Well…_Bryan…_

Bryan was gone and he had sworn to avenge the boy by seriously maiming Boris Balkov. Little did he know, Kai had sworn to do the same thing.

Watching his best friend now, Tala couldn't believe he hadn't noticed all the times when Kai must have gone to school or practice covered in contusions and abrasions. But, if there was one thing Kai was exceptional at doing – apart from beyblading – was hiding things from people. All his life, the slate-haired Russian had been hiding his feelings, abused body and pretty much his entire life from those around him. It was only now that there were people who were starting to suspect what his life really had been like.

"Kai…Please…" It was hard for him to say please at the best of times, but he needed to know. If Kai was going to continue to let that bastard hurt him, then he needed to tell someone. It would kill him if he didn't and Tala was pretty sure that he was well on the way to a massive breakdown.

Tala quickly glanced at the black watch strapped to his wrist. Shit, they only had another fifteen minutes before Kai had a meeting with Stanley Dickenson.

"Okay…" the abused teen whispered and Tala could have sighed in relief. Inwardly, he did so.

Kai's voice was soft – softer than Tala had ever heard it. He sounded like the scared, young boy he must have been years before. Crimson eyes were dulled and lifeless, staring into a void where only he could see what was going on. Pale arms wrapped loosely around his knees, fingers entwined to keep them there. Dull, slate locks fell forward into his eyes, obscuring part of the black bandana wrapped securely around his forehead. Kai looked miserable and Tala never wanted to see his friend like that ever again.

"It started just after my parents were killed…" he started and Tala held his breath. Shit, Kai would have been, what, six or seven? _Fuck…_

"At first it was only a few light hits, slaps and the occasional kick. It was only if I ever did something really bad, but as time wore on, he got rougher. After a few months, the slightest thing done wrong and I was punished…"

_"I didn't do anything wrong, Grandpa!" a young boy screamed as the other occupant of the room stormed over, dark eyes flashing with anger. A large hand was flung out to the side and came crashing into the young boy's cheek with such force that he was flung across the room. A single cry echoed as the boy skidded on the wooden flooring and slammed into the nearby wall._

"In the beginning, I thought that I deserved everything he dealt me. Mother and Father were dead because of me and Grandfather was punishing me because he had lost his only child. I didn't blame him for wanting to hit me."

"_He's gone because of you! If you hadn't been around, I wouldn't have lost my son! You killed your own mother and father, you murdering little shit!" Another kick landed on the young boy's side, sending another scream into the air. The scream died down to a pathetic whimper and the man looked down at the boy with scornful distaste. "I will revel at the day when you die."_

"He said such horrible things and I took them to heart…"

Tala realised after that sentence that Kai wasn't aware of where he was anymore. The trauma of reliving such a horrendous past had somehow stopped parts of his brain functioning properly and as a result, Kai was reliving his past in a world where only he could see or hear the happenings.

"And after a while, I wanted him to hit me. He made me think that everything that went bad in his or my life was my fault. I deserved to be punished because all I did was cause pain and sadness around me."

_"Hit me!" the trembling boy screamed at the elder man. "Please! I broke the vase, I'm sorry! HIT ME!" The boy was cut off as a fisted hand smashed into his temple, effectively dropping the boy. Blood pooled from the deep cut on the side of his head and dripped to the wooden floor. Crimson eyes fluttered closed from the head wound and as the boy lost consciousness, he spoke. "Thank you…"_

"The worst day was on the five year anniversary of Mother and Father's death. I was eleven and Grandfather had me stay home from school the day. He said that he had a surprise for me. I was so excited, because I thought that I might be getting a nice present. Ha, if only wishes could come true…"

"_Yes Grandfather?" Crimson eyes widened at the sight of his grandfather standing in the doorway of his bedroom. There was a small, slightly evil smirk adorning the elder man's features and the child looked up to see a middle sized box in his grandfather's right hand. _

"_A present? For me?" he said, incredulous. He hadn't received any presents from anyone since his Mum and Dad had died. And it wasn't even his birthday…_

"_Open it, Kai," Voltaire said, handing the package to he boy. His eyes widened with pleasure and started ripping open the blood red wrapping paper. He gasped when he saw inside the box and threw the package away from him, frightened. He looked up at his grandfather with wide, terrified eyes. "Why…?"_

"It was-" Kai was suddenly cut off as the annoying familiar shrill bell rung, signalling the beginning of lunchtime. Tala watched as Kai's twin crimson orbs widened and the glaze covering them disappeared.

"I have to go," he stated and then hurriedly stood up, brushing himself off. Kai then unlocked the door and rushed out.

Tala stood in the boys' bathroom, staring at the place where Kai had been sitting for the past fifteen minutes. He was dying to hear what had been in the box, but at the same time…he wasn't sure if he wanted to know.

_I didn't know that his life had been so harsh. I bet my life that he's either forgotten or suppressed the really bad memories. Oh god, what did Kai do to deserve all this?_

Quickly making his mind up about what he was going to do, Tala rushed out of the bathroom after his friend. He desperately needed to talk to someone.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please Review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 14: Kiss Yourself For Me In The Mirror

Kai ran, weaving his way through the throngs of people milling about in the corridors as he made his way to meet Mr. Dickenson. He was confused. When he had been in the bathroom with Tala…it had all seemed like a dream. Had he really spoken about all those things? He had almost told Tala his most deepest, darkest secret…or had he?

He didn't know anymore. Everything was so confusing. Why couldn't he have been killed in the car crash and be done with it? He crashed through the door to Mr. Dickenson's office and shot the man an apologetic look at his sudden appearance.

Max was already in the room, sitting in a nearby seat. His electric blue eyes had widened on his entrance and Kai had to fight to maintain his composure at the worried looks he was getting from the two.

"Sorry," he said, wincing as it came out as more of a rasp than anything else.

Stanley nodded, motioning for him to take a seat. "Right, before anything else, there is something that you two must be informed of." Kai frowned. Mr. Dickenson had a serious, almost suspicious look on his face as he was speaking.

"There is to be a tournament held in one weeks time. It is between the top two teams of Bakuten High and the top two teams of the prestigious Balkov Abbey Bladers."

Kai froze. _BIOVOLT…_

**

* * *

**

Well, how did everyone like it? I tried this chapter to delve into Kai's mind a little more and show just how scarred he really is and how strong the façade he holds must be. Please tell me what you think and I'll try to get out another chapter before I go to Auckland!

**-Dancer-**


	15. Kiss Yourself For Me In The Mirror

Hey there everyone! I am so sorry for the long wait between chapters, but things have happened since my last update.

Firstly, I went to Auckland to celebrate my eighteenth birthday and see Cobra Starship, The Academy is… and Panic! At The Disco live in concert. It rocked by the way!

Secondly (and not so great) is that when I got back from my trip, I found out that one of my closest friends is sick again. She found out a few days ago that her cancer is back and it's not looking good at all. So, I've been pretty down about that, 'cause we all thought (including her) that it was finally gone. But, no…it's not.

(Keep holding on, Steph. Me, Matt, Bridget, Skippy and all your other friends will always be here for you).

Sorry for all the doom and gloom.

Holy shit! **21** reviews for one chapter! You guys rock!! And I've passed the **200**-review mark after only 14 chapters!! YAY!! Thanks so much, guys.

Review replies…

aquaanime - thanks! Hope you enjoy the new chapter.

jellybean-kitty - sorry for the wait. Enjoy!

.EverLastingFun. - here's the next chapter! Ahh...the box lol. That will be discovered in a later chapter. Enjoy.

x-Black-Dranzer-x - thanks so much! Your words of kindness are so cool!! Love ya for it too XD Hoep you enjoy the chapter!

Miako6 - thanks! Hope this chapter is just as good. Enjoy.

Ugawa - sorry for the wait! Hope you like :D

FlamingIce94 - thank you so much!I can't believe how many people like how I write Kai and Tala's friendship XD Hope you like!

StarShinobi - thanks! Lol, The Box. Hehe, you'll have to wait for that one XD Enjoy.

totally-bobby-dogz - wow, really?? COOL!! Thanks, and I hope you like this chapter.

grimnessreaper - hehe, Tala's gonna do something...the box? Later chapters XD Enjoy and thanks!

Nameless Little Girl - thanks! Enjoy.

pheonix80 - thank you, thank you, thank you! Love the review and I'm glad that you like my fic so much! Enjoy the new chap.

HimekoSukie - hehe, everyone wants to know about the box XD I'm gonna leave everyone in suspence a little longer -evil laugh- Glad you liked! Thanks and enjoy :D

p power - no, YOU ROCK!! That was the COOLEST review! Thank you so, so, so much! Sorry for the wait! Hope you like the chapter! XD

Keight Ylonen - hi! First off, the concert rocked, my b-day was awesome! Didn't get drunk though, got no ID!! -sweatdrop- LOL. Thanks for reviewing! ENJOY XD

Tsukiokuhime - hehe, I love the last line of your reivew! (Angst...come to me) LOL, it's PERFECT! Oh and your guess is on the right line :D Enjoy and thanks!

the Light Shadow - dreaming? Wow, I feel honoured! Sorry, no info about the box in this chapter. Maybe the next...or the next XD Thanks so much for reviewing and I really am sorry about killing Bryan! Enjoy.

The keeper of lone wolfs - thank you so much! I really hope you enjoy this chapter too.

Alexa Hiwatari - thanks!! Hope you enjoy this chapter too!

BloodRedViolet - don't be sorry! I go through the same thing lol. Hehe, hope you enjoy this chapter too! Sorry for the wait.

shininglake - thanks! Sorry, but there's nothing about the box in this chapter... -ducks flying objects- But maybe in the next chapter! Hope you like the chapter :)

**Woah! That's a lot of reviews! I thought I would reply this way as a kind of 'sorry' thing for all you having to wait so long for the chapter. ENJOY!**

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 14: Kiss Yourself For Me In The Mirror**

Kai ran, weaving his way through the throngs of people milling about in the corridors as he made his way to meet Mr. Dickenson. He was confused. When he had been in the bathroom with Tala…it had all seemed like a dream. Had he really spoken about all those things? He had almost told Tala his most deepest, darkest secret…or had he?

He didn't know anymore. Everything was so confusing. Why couldn't he have been killed in the car crash and be done with it? He crashed through the door to Mr. Dickenson's office and shot the man an apologetic look at his sudden appearance.

Max was already in the room, sitting in a nearby seat. His electric blue eyes had widened on his entrance and Kai had to fight to maintain his composure at the worried looks he was getting from the two.

"Sorry," he said, wincing as it came out as more of a rasp than anything else.

Stanley nodded, motioning for him to take a seat. "Right, before anything else, there is something that you two must be informed of." Kai frowned. Mr. Dickenson had a serious, almost suspicious look on his face as he was speaking.

"There is to be a tournament held in one weeks time. It is between the top two teams of Bakuten High and the top two teams of the prestigious Balkov Abbey Bladers."

Kai froze. _BIOVOLT…_

"Balkov Abbey Bladers!?" Max exclaimed, his blue eyes widening hugely. Kai frowned as Max continued to gape. "We have to blade _them_!? The Balkov Abbey Bladers are the Russian champions! They've like, _never_ been beaten!"

Kai clenched his fists, feeling the warmth of the blood running over his fingers to fall over his whitening knuckles. He was glad that the other two hadn't noticed the blood, or else he would be in a world of trouble.

"Yes, Max," Stanley Dickenson stated kindly. "You will have to face the Balkov Abbey Bladers in one week. You must remember though, these matches are only part of an exhibition tournament to kick start the actual inter-school championships. And as you all know, Bakuten A Team are the current champions for this country and Balkov Abbey are the champions for Russia. Both teams are highly skilled and a match between the two champion teams would be a great opener for the tournament."

Frowning, Kai thought of the coach of Balkov Abbey. It was funny really, as the coach was currently the school's newly employed doctor. Boris Balkov.

"Mr. Dickenson," the bluenette spoke, projecting his voice cold and collected. His scarlet eyes flashed as he spoke about a topic he would have rather forgotten. "Do you have any information on the Balkov Abbey A Team? It would be most likely that they will know about the members of my team, as it is the…mostly," he stumbled over the wording as he realised that Bryan wasn't among them any more… "Mostly the same."

"You have a good point, my boy," the BBA Representative said with a cheery grin. "As a matter of fact, I do happen to have a file on the Balkov Abbey A Team. I suppose, as the captain of Bakuten A, you would like to see it?"

Kai nodded, flicking the slate locks out of his eyes as they fell forward with the motion. Stanley reached over to the table beside him and picked up an A4 manila folder. He handed it to Kai, who took it with a calculating gaze. Even before he had heard about the matches, he had been wondering about his old team and whether or not the same people were still apart of it.

Before he could open the folder, a startled cry rang out through the room.

"Kai!" Whipping his head up, said teen stared into the kind eyes of Stanley Dickenson. He noticed that the man wasn't looking at his face, but rather, at his hands which were coincidently covered in click, red liquid.

_Shit. I really should have cleaned it up before I came here. But I didn't have the time…if I had said any more to Tala…he would have found out what was in the box…no one can ever know…_

"Are you alright, Kai?" Max's concerned voice piped up through the silence.

Nodding faintly, the Russian teen focused on the folder in his bloodstained hands. "I'm fine. I just slipped and grazed my hands on the concrete." He didn't know whether or not they believed him, but it was just going to have to do for the time being.

Ignoring the worried looks shooting his way, Kai opened the folder and stared at the list of names and his heart sank.

_They still haven't gotten away…_

On the first piece of paper, at the top, read:

_Balkov Abbey Bladers A Team: Ian, Spencer, Garland, Ming Ming, Rick._

Kai stopped reading. That's all he had to know. They still hadn't escaped Boris' clutches and now he was going to have to face off against two of his old friends…two friends who didn't know that Bryan was…was gone…

"Right. We must go now," Mr. Dickenson was saying as he stood. "The rest of your teams will be waiting for you both."

**Meanwhile…**

Tala stood under the shade of the school's trees. He bit his lip as the man he had been waiting for arrived under the cloak of shadow.

"You wanted to talk?" the man spoke in a deep voice, his tone belying his curiosity.

"Yes," the redheaded Russian confessed. "I think you might be interested to hear what I have to say. And if I can get proof…"

A short silence followed his statement. "Get proof of what?"

…

Tala sighed. "That Kai Hiwatari is being abused by his grandfather…"

Captain Karl Luxford couldn't suppress the gasp that escaped his lips.

**A few minutes later…**

Kai, Max and Mr. Dickenson entered the courtyard outside the gymnasium and saw the nine or so people waiting for them. Kai found that he couldn't look in the direction of Tala, their discussion and his almost-confession still blatant in his mind.

He walked over to where his team was standing and stood to the side of them, not even glancing in their direction. He had too many things swirling through his mind to really concentrate on anything else; like his and Tala's talk, and the upcoming match with the Russian champs.

He tuned out at as Stanley began to tell the other bladers what was happening with the exhibition tournament and as to whom they were battling against. Through the haze settling over his mind, Kai heard the sharp intakes of breath when Balkov Abbey Bladers were mentioned.

"Fine then!" a voice shouted out what seemed only seconds later, but Kai knew that it had been much longer. He opened his eyes to see Brooklyn pointing a finger at him, rage settling over his features. "If we're going to battle them, I want to be Captain!"

_What?_

Kai stood, stunned. He knew that Brooklyn's dams were close to bursting, but this wasn't the time for them to break! They were going to face most probably the most ruthless, cold-hearted beyblade team in the world and he was the only one who knew them well enough to even think of standing a chance against them!

"No," he said quietly, with an icy coldness clipping his tone. If Brooklyn wanted the captaincy, he was going to have to fight for it. "I'm not allowing you to be captain, Brooklyn."

Turning, Kai focused his gaze on the orange-haired teen. Brooklyn's fists clenched as he seethed over the fact.

"But," he continued speaking. "If you feel that you should be captain so badly, then we'll blade for the title. Me against you…who ever wins is the captain of Bakuten A Team against the Balkov Abbey Bladers. Fair enough?"

Brooklyn actually smirked at the idea. "Sounds good to me."

Kai let a small grin slip and pulled out Dranzer and let everyone have a good look at his upgraded blade. Many of the people present gasped at the new and improved version of the phoenix bitbeast. He had spent hours one night fixing her up.

_Flashback_

_After many hours of tinkering, Kai sat back and sighed. The blade on his desk was perfect. The attack ring was composed of the strongest and most resilient metal that could be used for beyblading and the defence ring was the same. All parts had been custom made for the upcoming inter school championships and it was the one thing that his grandfather was allowing him to compete in._

_Dranzer sat on his desk, shining in all her glory. Her new blade was a stunning deep scarlet with black flames precisely drawn around the edge of the attack ring. The flames faded at the edges into the main red, constructing an enchanting scene, seemingly like the flames were infused with Dranzer's spirit._

_They were ready. With their new move and the upcoming tournament, nothing was going to stop them from taking the title once again._

_End flashback_

"Let's do this!"

Five minutes later, they were standing at either side of the school's main beydish. Kai locked Dranzer into his launcher and faced his opponent, Brooklyn Kingston. He wasn't allowing himself the thoughts of potentially losing. He couldn't afford to lose. He wasn't going to lose.

"Everyone ready!" a voice called out from somewhere to the right. Kai nodded and Brooklyn did the same.

"Three…two…one…" everyone joined in for the last three words and the battle that would ultimately decide the fate of the upcoming exhibition tournament matches was underway.

_"Let it rip!"_

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 15: Don't Lose Your Faith

Kai pulled the rip chord back and let Dranzer fly into the beydish. The black and red beyblade executed a perfect launch and landed just to the left of dead centre. Zeus - Brooklyn's blade – landed in the same position on the other side of the dish.

Eyes narrowing, Kai focused his mind and forced everything other than the battle ensuing between him and his opponent. He wouldn't let Brooklyn take the captaincy from him.

"Dranzer!" he screamed, urging the sacred phoenix forward to attack. Obeying his command, his blade shot forward and slammed into the completely black beyblade that was Zeus.

"Zeus!"

The two beyblades clashed in a fury of sparks that had everyone shielding their eyes. Kai stared on as red fought with black. He had a plan. He would fight Brooklyn and make the teen think that he had the upper hand, and then he would unleash his secret weapon…

_It's time to come out and play…_

Voltaire Hiwatari smirked from his place in the shadows. Everything was going perfectly to plan.

**

* * *

**

Please leave a review! Once again, I'm so sorry for the two week wait.

**Thanks for reading!**

**-Dancer-**


	16. Don't Lose Your Faith

Hi! I'm back with another chapter! Thank you everyone who has reviewed! Last time I checked, I had 223 reviews! THANK YOU! Hope you all enjoy!

Thanks to all that reviewed!

.EverLastingFun., the Light Shadow, jellybean-kitty, american farmer, pinkjasmin90, x-Black-Dranzer-x, Rapunzelle, totally-bobby-dogz, StarShinobi, FlamingIce94, HimekoSukieu, p power, grimnessreaper, Miako6, saturnz-moonlit-beauty, pheonix80. All you guys ROCK!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 15: Don't Lose Your Faith**

"Let it rip!"

Kai pulled the rip chord back and let Dranzer fly into the beydish. The black and red beyblade executed a perfect launch and landed just to the left of dead centre. Zeus - Brooklyn's blade – landed in the same position on the other side of the dish.

Eyes narrowing, Kai focused his mind and forced everything other than the battle ensuing between him and his opponent. He wouldn't let Brooklyn take the captaincy from him.

"Dranzer!" he screamed, urging the sacred phoenix forward to attack. Obeying his command, his blade shot forward and slammed into the completely black beyblade that was Zeus.

"Zeus!"

The two beyblades clashed in a fury of sparks that had everyone shielding their eyes. Kai stared on as red fought with black. He had a plan. He would fight Brooklyn and make the teen think that he had the upper hand, and then he would unleash his secret weapon…

_It's time to come out and play…_

Voltaire Hiwatari smirked from his place in the shadows. Everything was going perfectly to plan.

Eyes darting quickly to the left and right, Kai focused on the two blades spinning furiously in the dish. Blurs of red and black, the two objects slammed into each other with such force that shockwaves could be felt emitting from the attacks.

A large gust of wind swept through the area and Kai screwed his eyes shut just before a cloud of dust flew through the air and into anyone's unprotected eyes. Crimson orbs closed, he could hear Dranzer and Zeus battling it out.

"Dranzer!" he called out to the phoenix who replied with a loud call. "Rise, my phoenix!"

Opening his eyes, Kai saw a stunning red light shoot upwards from the centre of his beyblade. A loud call rang through the air as a single wing unfurled into the light, the glow reflecting off the deep crimson and gold feathers lining the wing. Moments later, another wing appeared in the same way as the first, unfurling into the light.

The wings swept downward in one huge thrust to push the rest of the sacred phoenix's body into the red glow and in a few seconds, the stunning form of Dranzer flew into the sky before the crowd gathered to witness the battle.

A body covered in magnificent red and gold feathers, Dranzer was the epitome of beauty. Her sparkling blue eyes shone in the light and contrasted deeply with the red of her body. Five tails tipped with golden manes fanned out from her body, each one swinging like it possessed a life of its own.

Opening her beak, Dranzer let out a battle cry that was melodious and created a tune so beautiful, it seemed unnatural.

Kai smiled as he saw his bitbeast in the air in all her glory. One would probably think him a wuss to have such a beautiful bitbeast, and considering the fact that his bitbeast was female…

But Dranzer was one thing he wasn't ashamed of. Before him, the phoenix had belonged to his mother and he was sure that some of her beauty had passed on to Dranzer when she had passed away. It was one thing that infuriated his grandfather to no end as the attempts to recreate Dranzer and her beauty failed again and again.

The Russian teen winced as Zeus slammed particularly hard into Dranzer, creating golden sparks that flew everywhere. A few landed on Kai's unprotected arm and he winced at the burning sensation that erupted from the point of contact.

He heard a loud laugh sound from Brooklyn and looked over to see the teen standing with a maniacal grin plastered on his features. Moments later, the grin disappeared to be replaced with a sour scowl that transformed his entire face.

_Brooklyn Kingston…_ Kai thought as he took in the changes in the boy's stature. _Nature lover, hard-core beyblade fanatic, hates losing, A-grade freak._

"Kai!" said boy screamed, his eyes flashing dangerously with barely hid contempt. "You're going down! I _will_ beat you and I _will_ be the captain of the team!"

Brooklyn's words were drowned out as a loud bang ripped through the air. A large burst of wind followed and Kai flung an arm up to protect his eyes against the assault. When he removed his arm from in front of his crimson orbs, the sight he saw made him stop dead.

(AN: I have taken liberties when describing Zeus, as I have no idea what the bitbeast actually looks like).

In front of Brooklyn hovered a beat unlike anything Kai had ever seen before. Sure, he had seen the orange-haired teen blade before, but he had never unleashed his bitbeast.

The large black shape swirled like dust in a storm before finally settling and starting to form into something akin to a savage beast. Brilliant white eyes glared from the shadow and a low growl emitted from the throat of the beast. A bright glow shot out from Zeus, looking something like a lightning bolt and when the glow faded, the god-like beast stood and reared his head in all his glory.

Taking the form of a half wolf, half dragon, Zeus was definitely an impressive sight. Twin white eyes stared out from the head of a wolf, red fangs seemingly dripping with blood. Obsidian fur covered the head, which gradually receded into black scales towards the torso of the hybrid. The two front paws of Zeus were covered in the black fur, marred by yellow slashes like lightning bolts, which was the element Zeus controlled.

Sharp claws retracted and receded with ease, almost glowing with the way the light was shining on the white bone-like weapons.

The torso of Zeus was, unlike the head, covered in slick, black scales. This was the part that Kai thought extremely unnatural – the part where the fur morphed into scales. If anything, it would seem that Zeus was a product of BIOVOLT's experimentations. He had never heard of a natural hybrid bitbeast.

The two hind legs of Zeus were exact replicas of his front two, only covered in scales. On the beast's back, there was a large, yellow and red lightning bolt running along the spine. It weaved its way down the torso and every now and then, static fizzled from the body, showing that electricity was in fact rippling through the hybrid.

Zeus' tail was deadly. Scaled, like half of his body, the tail also had several murderous spikes jutting through the flesh. Sharp to the point of resembling the width of a pin, the spikes swayed to and fro as the tail swept from side to side. As it was, the tail also morphed into a dangerous and deadly spike. This one, however, wasn't the standard silver in colour, but the same black that swathed the rest of his body. It was obviously a camouflage, intending to do the most damage it possibly could.

"Do you like what you see, Kai?" Brooklyn taunted, eyes gleaming at the sight of his god-named bitbeast. "He definitely lives up to his name. Zeus was the most powerful of the Greek gods, controlling all the other gods in the Greek Pantheon, which at the time were the most powerful of gods. The same will go for my bitbeast. Once I beat you and that oversized chicken you call a bitbeast, Zeus will be the most powerful of all!"

As his opponent continued to rant, Kai couldn't help but feel that Brooklyn had started to lose the plot. _What he hell is he going on about? The Greek gods have nothing to do with this world! Zeus is nothing like the Zeus of legend!_

As an afterthought, Kai clenched his fists. _And Dranzer isn't an oversized chicken!_

"Go Dranzer!" he shouted in response to Brooklyn's rave. He would show Brooklyn that Dranzer wasn't someone to be messed with. There was a reason he was the captain of the team, after all.

Dranzer shot forward at her master's command. Racing towards the entirely black beyblade, the red and black blade spun furiously so much that flames started to ignite around it. Seeing the flames, Kai nodded and spoke to his bitbeast via the mind link that everyone possessed.

_Dranzer, you know what to do._

A single screech was all the conformation Kai needed and only seconds later; a great fireball erupted from nowhere and flung towards the stationary Zeus. As it neared the hybrid, it spilt into hundreds of smaller fireballs in the shape of sharp, blood red feathers.

As he was about to call out to Dranzer, Kai winced and a hand flung to his side. He screwed his eyes shut as the pain assaulted his battered body. _Damnit, my body isn't up to this kind of match. What was I thinking, going against Brooklyn when I'm in this state? Shit…_

Looking up through the haze of pain, Kai managed to see the tail end of the attack. Hundreds of flaming feathers had pierced Zeus' body, eliciting an ear-shattering roar from the beast. Kai let a weak smirk flicker across his lips before it became lost in a grimace.

"Zeus!" Brooklyn screamed as his bitbeast was attacked. A murderous scowl adorned his features as his piercing eyes glared at his opponent, who was clutching his ribs.

Kai saw the fury flash over Brooklyn's face and wondered what was coming next. He had to end the match quickly, before anyone found out about the injuries he was hiding. Glancing around him, the bluenette saw the shocked expressions on everyone's faces. They were in awe of the two bitbeasts and the power they wielded.

"Zeus!" Brooklyn called out again, "Dark Wave Lightning!"

Kai flinched. _Shit. I was counting on him _not_ using that attack! It's his most powerful one…there's only one attack I know that will counter it, but I don't know if I have the strength to use it…_

Debating within himself, Kai only barely noticed the dark energy crackling and sparking around the dark beast. He clenched his hands into fists as he realised that there was only one way he was going to survive Brooklyn's greatest attack. He was going to have to use his secret weapon.

It was something he really didn't want to do; as it was the one thing his grandfather had no idea about. It was bad enough what he had done to obtain it, but when BIOVOLT found out what he had done…it wouldn't be pretty.

Flicking a lock of slate hair out of his eyes, Kai readied himself for the task on which he was about to ask his bitbeast to do. The attack itself was going to drain his body of a lot of strength and he didn't have a lot to begin with. But if he lost this match, Brooklyn would be captain and who knew what would happen then.

It was common knowledge that Brooklyn Kingston was a self-centred prick that loved to revel in the power that his bitbeast held. He used that power to take advantage of the weaker people and on more than one occasion had destroyed his opponent's blade and bitbeast. It was a wonder why he hadn't joined with BIOVOLT yet. Unless…

Forcing the thoughts from his mind, Kai focused on the task at hand. Zeus was steadily gaining more and more dark power. A dark, menacing cloud had formed around the hybrid and flashes of superheated lightning flashed within the confines of the haze.

A trickle of blood dripped from between his lips as Kai focused on drawing out the power needed for his attack. He flinched at the pain that rippled across his ribs and pushed it to the back of his mind. It seemed that every wound littering his body decided to play up at the same time. The whip lashes on his back flared with the white-hot agony and bruises days old started throbbing.

_Shit, I'm over-doing it._

Gasping, Kai fell to his knees. He coughed and more red liquid spilled from his lips. He needed the strength for this attack…he had to win.

"Dranzer!" he screamed over the sound of electricity crackling. "Bring forth Black Dranzer!"

XxX

Tala frowned at the power emitting from both Zeus and Dranzer. Why did Kai and Brooklyn feel the need to use so much power? It wasn't the end of the world…

As the lightning flared from Zeus, Tala heard Kai scream out to his bitbeast. The redhead felt worry rise up inside him as Kai's form came into view. The teen was on his hands and knees; blood dripping from between slightly parted lips.

He looked over to where Captain Karl Luxford was standing, disguised as a teacher. The policeman's eyes were wide as he caught sight of the blood and Tala watched as fury took over the man. Captain Luxford's hands clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white from the pressure.

Tala hid a smirk as he watched. Voltaire was going down.

His thoughts were ripped from his mind as Kai yelled again, this time saying something different.

"_Dranzer! Bring forth Black Dranzer!"_

"Black Dranzer?" Tala whispered, not knowing what his friend was talking about. Then, a sudden chill swept over him. The redhead shivered. He had never felt anything so cold, so chilling, so…murderous in his life.

A loud shriek from Dranzer changed his attention and as he watched on, the red firebird continued shrieking as if in pain. A black light shot out from the red bird and in morbid fascination, Tala saw the shadow start to take shape into the form of another phoenix.

"No!" a deep voice boomed from behind him. The wielder of Wolborg blinked and then turned to see none other than Voltaire Hiwatari stepping out of the shadows, his eyes alight with barely contained fury. "Don't you dare use that bitbeast, Kai!"

Tala was angry and confused. _What the hell does that prick want? What is he even doing here!? And what about Black Dranzer? I didn't know that there could be more than one bitbeast of the same kind…twin phoenixes…_

Tala stopped himself there. He couldn't believe it. He had heard of the mythical twin phoenixes when he was younger and when he had found out Kai had possessed a phoenix bitbeast the thought had flashed through his mind. But…

Kai possessed the twin phoenixes.

Legend said that there were once twin phoenixes, complete opposites of each other. At first, Tala had thought Light and Dark…but now that he thought about it more and he knew the answer, Fire was also considered a source of light _and_ heat and Darkness was a source of shadow and coldness.

_Everything makes sense now._

XxX

Kai flinched as his grandfather's voice shot through the pain clouding his mind. He immediately called back both Dranzer and the barely formed Black Dranzer, gasping as all his strength was robbed of him. He could still faintly hear the sounds of electricity rippling through the air, but stopped when Stanley Dickenson shouted for Brooklyn to cease his attack.

Struggling to get upright, Kai strained his body to perform the simple task. Once standing, he came face to face with the man who had destroyed his entire life. It sickened him to see the fake look of horror and concern written all over Voltaire's aging features. The man was trying to save his own skin.

"Kai! Are you alright?" Voltaire was saying, his voice heavy with fake anxiety.

"I'm fine," he muttered, not wanting to talk to his grandfather. He only realised when his eyes landed on the stiff form of Tala that his gaze was wandering. His crimson orbs clashed with Tala's icy blue and the bluenette saw the unsuppressed anger igniting in the depths of Tala's eyes.

"I need to get you home and looked at by a doctor," Voltaire was saying, continuing with the 'concerned' act. The elder man's grey eyes were shining slightly and Kai had to fight the urge to gag. Unfortunately, that was when his body decided the need to cough took priority and Kai let the painful chesty cough through and just as he feared, blood speckled his lips.

Kai opened his mouth to argue the fact, but stopped short as everything in view started to spin. Feeling himself falling, he tried to keep himself upright, but seconds later he was leaning against his grandfather in what he would call 'a very undignified manner.'

"Let's go home, Kai."

"No!" he screamed, jerking away from the man suddenly. It had just occurred what he had done. He couldn't let his grandfather...couldn't let him get away with everything. At his shouted statement, the slate-haired boy knew that everyone's attention was on him. It wasn't exactly what he wanted, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

Stumbling, Kai slowly edged away from his grandfather and towards Tala and the man he was talking to. Shivering from both the cold and the wounds littering his body, the Russian teen gasped when a foreign hand landed on his shoulder. He whipped around as fast as his body would allow, tripping slightly in the process, to meet Stanley Dickenson's concerned gaze.

"Kai? Are you alright, m'boy?" the elder man asked quietly, steering the young man towards his waiting friends.

Kai nodded slightly, blinking as the world spun before his very eyes. He gave his grandfather one last glance and watched in fascination as the man gave up and stormed off without any hesitation.

_I'm going to get it bad when I go home… Kai thought solemnly. He's never going to let me live this down. The full implications of his actions hit home then. I can't ever go home…_

Kai felt himself being placed under the care of Tala and stood still, eyes focused on the building in front of him. If he didn't move his gaze, then the world didn't spin. It seemed like a good idea to him.

"Alright, everyone," Stanley spoke, his voice grave. "After watching the match between Brooklyn and Kai…" It was only then that Kai noticed Brooklyn's furious glare directed at him. Averting his sight from the school building, Kai glanced at the orange-haired boy. Brooklyn wasn't taking the interruption of the match very well at all. "After assessing both bladers, I have decided that a repeat will not be necessary and I conclude that Kai Hiwatari will remain as the captain for the Bakuten A Team."

Then Stanley turned towards Kai and Tala. The crimson-eyed boy saw the pity and concern flashing in the BBA Representative's eyes and growled low in his throat. He didn't need anyone's sympathy or pity!

He heard people clapping, showing their appreciation for a match well fought. Then a gasp reached his ears. What?

A wave of dizziness overcame him and Kai leant into Tala's embrace a little more, unsteady on his feet. The gasp formed into words as Kai felt the world slipping away from him.

"Shit! He's gonna go down!"

"Kai!"

Then he was met with nothing but blissful oblivion.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 16: Share Another Night, With Me

Tala cursed as Kai's eyes slid closed and his body went limp in his arms. Grasping the lithe teen around the waist, he managed to stop him from hitting the ground. Worried bladers came rushing over as he gently lay Kai on the ground to inspect the injuries, which would have caused the collapse.

The redhead didn't like the amount of blood speckled on the unconscious teen's pale lips at all. Some minute part of his subconscious thought that it was probably from a bit lip or tongue, but the rational part of him disagreed. It was the product of internal bleeding.

Shit. He couldn't deal with this. Not so soon after Bryan's passing. It was too soon…he couldn't lose another friend.

"Kai!" he screamed frantically, shaking the teen with vigour. All it did was encourage the bluenette's head to loll around, his eyes still staying closed. Kai's face was frighteningly pale, the dark lashes contrasted starkly with his pale cheekbones.

After much more shaking, there was still no response from the slate-haired teen.

"Someone call 911!" an unknown person screamed, as nothing Tala did would wake his friend. By now blood was starting to slide over Kai's fingers and onto the ground, suggesting even more injuries and more blood trickled from between his lips.

_Kai's gonna die…Kai's gonna die…Kai's gonna die…_

The mantra repeated itself within Tala's head as he continually slapped or shook his friend's prone form.

_Please, Kai…don't die…don't leave me alone…_

**

* * *

**

Well that's another chapter done and dusted! I hope you guys liked the battle between Kai and Brooklyn :)

**About The Box…a lot of you are wondering what was in it (a lot more than what I thought would want to know!). The answer will come somewhere between the chapters 18 and 21. Only 8 or 9 chapters to go now!**

**Please leave a review!**

**

* * *

**

Oh and I have a new story up. It's called Tattooed in Flame. Here's a preview:

**Tattooed in Flame**

**DancerInTheDark101**

Summary: Pyromaniac: a person with an uncontrollable impulse to set things on fire. For Kai Hiwatari, the diagnosis didn't matter. He already knew what he was. Besides, it was fun. Although, he really didn't mean for anyone to die…AU

**Prologue: The First Spark**

Flicking the lighter, the boy watched at the flame jumped upwards instantly. It swayed to and fro in the breeze before succumbing to the force of the wind and was snuffed out. Frowning, the boy flicked again and was once again entranced at the strange substance that was essential for living, but was a notorious killer as well.

Fire…it might as well be the centre of the world. It was something the world could not live without, but it was also something that ravaged many of the world's forests every year, destroying not only the trees but homes as well.

A sigh escaped the teen's lips as he closed the lighter, effectively killing the flame. Pocketing the silver object, he stood up and watched as a dark car came racing down the street. He smirked as the car got closer and saw the personalised number plate flashing brightly. It read: MEB4U. Translation: Me. Before. You.

"Yo, Hiwatari!" yelled the driver as he leant out of the window as the car slid to a stop outside the bus shelter. "What you doing waiting at a bus stop of all places!?"

"What do you want, Tala?" Kai retorted to the flame-haired teen hanging out the driver's window, grinning like an idiot. "Obviously your worthless brain can't remember, but my car got totalled a few weeks ago. Remember? It's getting fixed."

A look of realisation dawned across the redhead's face and he bit his lip before scratching the back of his head. "Whoops. Sorry, I forgot. Wanna ride?"

Kai shook his head in exasperation. The idiot had also forgotten that he was supposed to be picking him up anyway. They had things to do. "Yeah. Remember we've gotta go to the school?" He took his lighter back out for emphasis.

An excited look flared in Tala's eyes at the sight of the silver object. "Right!" he smirked. "We've got a school to torch!"

**

* * *

**

That's just part of the prologue. If it interests you, go have a look! I've posted it at the same time as this chapter. Thanks!

**See yaz all next time.**

**-Dancer-**


	17. Share Another Night, With Me

Hi there! First off, I am so sorry for the REALLY long wait for this chapter! I've had a bad last couple of weeks, plus writers block so I haven't much enthusiasm to write. But here is the new chapter! I've plotted out the last few chapters already, so the next chapters should be out fairly fast Thanks for all your support so far, guys! It means a lot. Oh and to all the readers of IFOF, I almost have the new chapter finished! (everyone drops dead in shock…) lol.

OMG YOU GUYS ROCK! I just checked my stats for the story and was blown away! **241 reviews, 5,924 hits, 33 favourites, 35 alerts! **

And I was also blown away by my author stats too! I'm on the favourites of **50** people! Yay!

Now, onto the review replies:

jellybean-kitty – sorry for the wait! Hope you like this chapter too.

kavbj – thanks! Lol, yeah I do tend to kill Bryan a lot, don't I? He's just so easy to kill though! Hehehe. The concert: it wasn't that great here in NZ. Panic! Were pretty mellow (well compared to MCR), but Cobra Starship and The Academy Is…rocked! Hehe, IFOF's new chapter is almost written!! Hope you enjoy the new chapter.

Rapunzelle – sorry for the wait! Hope you enjoy the chapter XD

grimnessreaper – thanks! Hope you enjoy the new chap!

Pickle Reviver – wow, really?? Hehe, I may be able to answer some of your wishes…the others…you'll just have to wait and find out X) Sorry for the wait! I hope the chapter makes up for it.

american farmer – thanks! Enjoy.

BloodRedViolet – thank you! Sadly, my friend isn't getting any better. I hope that you like the new chapter! Sorry for the wait.

totally-bobby-dogz – thank you! Hope you enjoy the new chap :)

.EverLastingFun. – thanks! Hope you like the chap!

pheonix80 – lol. Thanks for the review! Hope you like the new chapter.

p power – wow, I didn't realise how many people loved the last chapter! Thanks so much for the review and I hope you like this chapter just as much!

HimekoSukie – thanks! I try my hardest with the battles to make them as believable as possible. I hope I succeeded in doing so! Hope you enjoy the new chapter.

shininglake – thanks! It's alright. I know you like it, so that's enough for me :) Hope you like the new chapter.

Nameless Little Girl – thanks! Enjoy.

StarShinobi – lol, you and that box! Hehehe. Chapter 18 is where you will find out about the Box…mwha ha ha ha! Thanks so much for the review. I hope you like this chapter too!

The keeper of lone wolfs – thank you! Sorry for the wait, I hope you like the new chapter!

the Light Shadow – thanks! I can't promise anything……o.o I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

x-Black-Dranzer-x – thank you for your kind words! I try my hardest with the battles :) Hope you enjoy!

**Whoa, 18 reviews! Thanks!**

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

**_DancerInTheDark101_**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 16: Share Another Night, With Me**

Tala cursed as Kai's eyes slid closed and his body went limp in his arms. Grasping the lithe teen around the waist, he managed to stop him from hitting the ground. Worried bladers came rushing over as he gently lay Kai on the ground to inspect the injuries, which would have caused the collapse.

The redhead didn't like the amount of blood speckled on the unconscious teen's pale lips at all. Some minute part of his subconscious thought that it was probably from a bit lip or tongue, but the rational part of him disagreed. It was the product of internal bleeding.

Shit. He couldn't deal with this. Not so soon after Bryan's passing. It was too soon…he couldn't lose another friend.

"Kai!" he screamed frantically, shaking the teen with vigour. All it did was encourage the bluenette's head to loll around, his eyes still staying closed. Kai's face was frighteningly pale, the dark lashes contrasted starkly with his pale cheekbones.

After much more shaking, there was still no response from the slate-haired teen.

"Someone call 911!" an unknown person screamed, as nothing Tala did would wake his friend. By now blood was starting to slide over Kai's fingers and onto the ground, suggesting even more injuries and more blood trickled from between his lips.

_Kai's gonna die…Kai's gonna die…Kai's gonna die…_

The mantra repeated itself within Tala's head as he continually slapped or shook his friend's prone form.

_Please, Kai…don't die…don't leave me alone…_

Yet, Kai's crimson orbs remained closed as people around him milled around, eyes wide with frantic shock.

Tala shook Kai's prone form, trying in vain to get his friend to wake up. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Brooklyn standing alone, his face impassive and cold. There was a tiny amount of blood decorating his clothes from small wounds littered over his arms and torso, but it paled in comparison to the amount stained on Kai...

A cough erupted from Kai's mouth and his eyes screwed in pain. Biting his lip, Tala gripped Kai tighter, letting his slate hair fall onto his arm holding the teen's head up. He couldn't suppress the pang of terror rippling through him as more blood slipped from between lips that were slowly going blue.

A weak shudder of breath escaped the unconscious teen as the ambulance finally showed. Flashing lights of red and blue filled the school. To Tala, everything seemed surreal, like something off a television programme. It couldn't be happening to him...could it?

"He's over here..." The words drifted to him, slurred and strange. He blinked, trying to get everything back into focus as his vision slipped. Someone was speaking to him, yet he couldn't understand much of what was being said. Was he dying? What was happening?

Confusion racing through his body, Tala gripped Kai – the only thing that was keeping him grounded – as he was lifted out of his arms. He screamed, not wanting them to take away his best friend. What if he never saw Kai again?

"No!" Tala leapt forward, latching onto Kai's arm as the paramedics strapped him into a stretcher, ready to place him in the ambulance to take him to the hospital.

"I think he's going into shock..." the hazy words reached him. Shock?

Suddenly lethargic, Tala let his tight grip on Kai's arm go and he slid to the ground, eyes staring blankly at nothing in particular. He didn't notice when someone slid their arms around him securely. It was only when he felt himself being lifted that he paid any attention to what was going on. He stared groggily into the blue eyes of Miguel when suddenly they changed…the blue lightened and became a lilac; Miguel's tanned face reverted to a paleness that Tala remembered well.

"Bry…Bryan?" he whispered, leaning heavily against the pale teen as his legs trembled beneath him. The other teen nodded and smiled sadly, his eyes shining with unshed tears. "Is it really you?"

Once again, there was another nod. Tala couldn't believe it. But Bryan…he couldn't be there could he?

Looking up, Tala was met with Bryan's lilac gaze. Tala could feel consciousness slipping away from him and he tried desperately to hold on to the awareness that was slowly being stolen away from him. He had to stay awake. He _needed _to stay awake. He wanted to know if it really was Bryan or if it was all some crude imagery made up by his mind.

"Kai's gonna be okay, Tala," Bryan's voice whispered as Tala lost control and his eyes began to slide closed. "I'm going to make sure that he's alright. I promise."

Tala faintly nodded as his eyes finally completed the task of closing. The world disappeared from view as he fell backwards into Bryan's arms and all became silent.

xXx

"_When's he going to wake up?"_

"_I don't know! For fucks sake just shut up!" _

"_Sheesh, don't need to get all angry. It was just a question."_

"_It was a blood stupid question, that's what!"_

Tala groaned and opened his eyes slowly as the arguing voices made it through the black void of unconsciousness. Once partially awake, he could see the outlines of two or more people standing beside his bed. He immediately recognised one as Tyson Granger – the loudmouthed brat that he was, but the other was more unrecognisable and his hazy mind couldn't figure out who he was.

"Glad to see that you're awake," the taller boy spoke and Tala frowned. He knew the voice from somewhere, he just couldn't quite grasp where.

"Yeah!" Tyson yelled. The redhead winced as Tyson's loud voice made the headache starting to drum at his temples turn into a full-blown migraine.

"What happened?" he managed to croak, wincing at the sound of his rough voice. The last thing he remembered was hearing Bryan's voice and then there was nothing.

There was no answer for a while. The sun shone through the gap in the curtains, creating a single beam of light that reflected onto the floor. Tala stared at it as he waited for someone to answer his question. When none came, Tala struggled to sit up and he glared at the two boys, his eyes widening in shock when he finally recognised the taller one.

"Sp-Spencer?"

"The one and only." The blonde Russian grinned somewhat as Tala gaped. The last time he had seen Spencer had been when he had first left the Abbey. When he had been sent back, Spencer had already been gone. It had been years since they had last seen each other.

"Where's Kai?"

Silence followed the question. Tala looked from Tyson to Spencer and froze when he saw the dual looks of sadness mirrored in their eyes.

"Is he alright?" He didn't want to know the answer to be honest. He didn't know if he could take it if they said that Kai wasn't alright. Bryan had said…had said that Kai was going to be okay.

It was then that Tala noticed another bed in the room where he was. The stark white walls and immaculately clean furniture all signalled that he was currently in hospital. Fearfully, he glanced over at the other bed and froze.

Kai was lying in a bed similar to his. Slate bangs framed his pale face and a quiet hiss escaped every time he breathed; which the transparent tube shoved down his throat was helping. Cream blankets had been pulled up to his waist, revealing the extensive bruising marring his chest. Bandages were wrapped around his right shoulder and on both arms. There was also a bandage circling his head and the white cloth blended in frighteningly with his pale skin.

Several smaller tubes hung from stands that were inserted into the back of his hands via IV that were obviously administrating the teen antibiotics, painkillers and nutrients. Tala didn't think he had seen his friend in such a depressing state ever.

It was then that Tala noticed the absence of sound in the room. There was no steady beep coming from the heart monitor. A sudden fear rippled through him as he desperately tried to see Kai's chest moving up and down. The fact that the ventilator was hissing made no difference to him in his panic. It was only when he saw Kai's bruised chest move up with a deep breath that he calmed down.

Why? Why the hell is this happening to us? Voltaire and Boris can't seem to leave us alone, can they? But why? I hate the word 'why.'

As Tala lay there, eyes drifting towards Kai every so often as he conversed with Spencer and Tyson (who kept complaining of being hungry) he never noticed the dark figure lingering outside the room, keen eyes trained on the still form of Kai Hiwatari.

The figure smirked and a quick glance of golden could be seen.

**

* * *

**

…TBC…

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 17: Tie A Black Rose Into Your Hair

The dark shadow silently crept into the room. It was the middle of the night and the darkness was hiding him well. He shot the sleeping redhead a glare as he passed his bed, making his way towards the other one where Kai Hiwatari was currently residing.

Standing above his bed, the shadow smirked. He was finally going to complete the task his employer had entrusted him with. The other fool had never managed to do it, so it was passed to him. He had loved seeing the look of shock on the fool's face. It was priceless.

A pale hand swept away slate locks of hair off a pale face. Eyes that were currently closed fluttered in his sleep, the black lashes brushing against high cheekbones. The old fool was right in this aspect though, Kai Hiwatari was definitely a nice specimen of the human race.

It was going to be such a shame to kill him.

**

* * *

**

Please don't kill me!! –runs and hides as readers throw dangerous, sharp objects-

**The next chapter will be up very soon as I have already written it :D (I was on a roll today! Hehe).**

**Please leave a review and tell me what you thought! **

**-Dancer-**


	18. Tie A Black Rose Into Your Hair

Hi again, everyone! What's this? A quick update!! Hehe. Originally, I was going to wait a few more days to update, but I decided to be nice and update after only two days :) I'm glad that everyone liked the last chapter! Because, to be honest, I didn't really like it...but, hey! I guess what really matters is the opinion of my readers XD

Thanks to all those who reviewed!

Stats: reviews **257**, hits **6,567**, favourites **34**, alerts **37**. THANKS!

Now, onto all those lovely reviewers :)

the Light Shadow - thanks so much for the review! No, I hadn't stopped writing :) I was just taking a break lol. Hope you enjoy the new chapter!

BloodRedViolet - THANK YOU! you really liked the chapter that much? Wow...I'm flattered! But, unfortunately, I won't be leaving for a while lol. I've already written up to chapter 19 (I got on a roll!) so frequent updates for the next while :) Enjoy.

Demolition-GIRL-33236 - I felt so bad that I hadn't updated! Oh and a vague answer to your question: yes and no. I have the rest of the fic planned in my head and there is an evil twist that I'm planning on throwing in at the end. Mwha ha ha ha! So, yeah...Oh, I love death fics too :) Hehe. Enjoy and thanks!

x-Black-Dranzer-x - wow, thank you so much for your kind words! I really didn't think that I would have many readers after the long wait. I'm so glad to be proved wrong XD You find out answers to your questions soon... Enjoy!

Rapunzelle - OMG you get a cookie!! You will find out why at the end of the chapter :) Hehehe. Thanks for the review. Hope you enjoy!

Miako6 - hope it was soon enough for you! Thanks so much for the review, hope you like :)

jellybean-kitty - thanks! Hehe, I updated soon! :)

Pickle Reviver - hehe, I _LOVE_ your penname! -giggles- Thanks for reviewing! I hope you like this chapter too :)

Cyborgshi - I LOVE your descriptive review! lol. Hehe, I'm a fan of gore too. (I just bout The Hills Have Eyes and Sweeny Todd lol). Thanks so much, I hope you like the new chapter

grimnessreaper - thanks for reviewing! You are right, the suffering would end if he died, but am I evil enough to keep him alive and in pain?? Teehehehe. Hope you enjoy!

shininglake - oh no, I hope your fingers get better soon! I don't know what I would do with broken fingers...I wouldn't be able to type! Thanks for the awesome review :) Write films? Seriously? Wow, thank you! Enjoy

american farmer - thanks! Hoep you enjoy the new chapter :)

HimekoSukie - thanks! I feela bit better now :) Everything's calmed down quite a bit. Some of your questions will be answered this chapter Hope you enjoy!

pheonix80 - thank you! Oh and about the Bryan thing: Bryan pysically wasn't there. It was Bryan's spirit speaking to Tala. Or, depending on your take of it, it could have been Tala's mind imagining it all, trying to reassure himself. Hope you enjoy!

totally-bobby-dogz - thanks so much :) Hope you like the new chapter!

StarShinobi - okay! -borrows StarShinobi's sheild and blocks all sharp objects- Hope I updated quick enough for you! Plus, you find out what it in the box next chapter!! YAY! Hehe. Thanks so much for the review. I hope you enjoy this one!

**Woah, thanks for the 16 reviews!**

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

_**DancerInTheDark101**_

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 17: Tie A Black Rose Into Your Hair**

The dark shadow silently crept into the room. It was the middle of the night and the darkness was hiding him well. He shot the sleeping redhead a glare as he passed his bed, making his way towards the other one where Kai Hiwatari was currently residing.

Standing above his bed, the shadow smirked. He was finally going to complete the task his employer had entrusted him with. The other fool had never managed to do it, so it was passed to him. He had loved seeing the look of shock on the fool's face. It was priceless.

A pale hand swept away slate locks of hair off a pale face. Eyes that were currently closed fluttered in his sleep, the black lashes brushing against high cheekbones. The old fool was right in this aspect though, Kai Hiwatari was definitely a nice specimen of the human race.

It was going to be such a shame to kill him.

The figure pulled his hand away from Kai's face and focused his gaze on the familiar blue beyblade lying on the table beside the bed. The blade gleamed in the limited light, somewhat shadowed by the twin black one lying beside it. Residing in both blades were the centrepieces called bitchips and in each chip there was a picture of a phoenix. There were slight differences though. The blue blade had a picture of a magnificent glowing, red and golden phoenix whilst the black blade showed a dangerous, black phoenix that seemingly emitted waves of dark power.

The black blade worried the figure as he ran a slender finger over the sharp edges of the attack ring. He could feel the malice and bloodlust flowing from the dark phoenix and not even the warmth from the red phoenix could block it.

Twin phoenixes: Dranzer and Black Dranzer. They were almost mythical, the beasts. One held the power of fire, the other darkness. Even though they were so different, it was said that they couldn't survive without the other. One particularly popular rumour stated that Black Dranzer was the dark side of the fire phoenix, extracted and pure in its most evil form.

He didn't know whether the rumour was true or not, only that his boss had stated to kill Hiwatari and take the bitbeasts. He was to be very careful handling them, though, for reasons he did not know.

Deciding to grab the blades after he had finished his first task, the person shrouded in darkness reached into the pocket of his dark jacket and revealed a large, silver knife. The hilt was black with an intricate silver design snaking its way into the handle where it disappeared into the polished silver.

Taking a step closer to the sleeping Russian, he glanced quickly over to where Tala was also sleeping and prayed that he would remain asleep. Letting the silver blade gleam in the light, the shadow hovered over Kai Hiwatari, the knife held tightly in his hand.

Swallowing, he lowered the knife, preparing himself to deliver the final blow. He had spent hours discussing where he should plant the knife. Should he slice his neck open and watch the blood flow freely from his jugular? Or should he plant the knife to the hilt in his chest, straight into his heart? He was quickly trying to make up his mind. Before, he had sussed it all out because he had stupidly assumed that the teen would be attached to a heart monitor, but no, he wasn't.

Sighing quietly, the shadowed figure shifted his grip slightly on the hilt and readied himself to do the task set out for him. He was finally going to get the recognition he deserved.

And then, in a flash, the knife came plunging down towards the unsuspecting teen.

Voltaire smirked as he sat in his office, sipping his drink as the clock ticked slowly towards twelve at night. He had played his part perfectly earlier that day, being the concerned grandfather and all. However, there was one person who didn't think his charade was true; that damn Captain Luxford was snooping around again.

The policeman had questioned him after Kai had been rushed to the hospital. The questions weren't ones he was particularly fond of either. Did he know how Kai acquired so many wounds? Of course he blood did! But was he going to tell Luxford that? Never in a million years.

No one cold ever find out about what happened behind the doors of the Hiwatari mansion. For years, Kai had been obedient (sort of) and everything had been kept a well-kept secret. But ever since the boy had started to make some long lasting friends, things hadn't been going as well as hoped.

Oh well, it was all going to be fixed tonight. There would never be anyone to speak bad about him again if the one witness/victim was six feet under.

It had been a shock when that boy had showed up, asking for a job. After questioning the boy, he had been impressed by the amount of hatred he held for his grandson. It was perfect. He would get the boy to _exterminate_ his grandson and take the rap as well. And then, after Kai was gone, he would play the part of the grieving relative. Nothing could go wrong.

How wrong he was.

And then, in a flash, the knife came plunging down towards the unsuspecting teen. But before it could slide through the boy's skin, the door opened.

Eyes wide in shock, the shadow halted in his actions, the knife poised just above Kai's heart.

"What!?" the doctor screamed. "What are you doing!?" The light was suddenly switched on and the room was bathed in light. The figure cursed as his guise under shadows was ripped hastily away from him, revealing to the doctor as to whom he was.

And as if that wasn't bad enough, the redheaded Russian in the other bed started to wake, groaning as he shifted under the sheets.

"Get away from him, now!" the doctor ordered, his voice shaky with fear. He could see the man's eyes darting towards the button above Kai's bed, which was an emergency button. He couldn't allow that button to be pressed, as it would send medical personnel rushing into the room.

"What's going on?" Tala slurred, blinking heavily as he awoke from his sleep. The shadow watched on as he redhead noticed him and suddenly became very alert, blue eyes wide.

"Kai!"

The bluenette didn't even bat an eyelash at the call. The ventilator continued to hiss at every inhale and exhale the boy was making. It was the only sound penetrating the silence in the room.

In a split-second decision, the figure ignored the screams of horror and turned towards Kai, the knife falling at the same time. One moment later, time seemed to stand still as the blade cut through skin and muscle to finally stop when the blade was fully buried in the boy's chest. Only the hilt was visible; it was sticking up from a mass of dark, bruised skin where blood was slowly filtering out of the stab wound.

Leaving the knife in Kai's chest and disregarding the screams of anguish erupting from Tala, he ran.

Sprinting past the doctor, he ran through the door and into the corridor. He could hear the final scream of Tala as he weaved his way through halls and it kept repeating in his mind, over and over again.

"_REI!!"_

xXx

There was knock at the door and Voltaire frowned. He couldn't imagine who would be visiting him at this time of night.

Sighing, the elder Hiwatari shuffled over to the door, drink still in hand, and opened the large door to reveal Captain Karl Luxford. He must have showed his surprise as the man smirked.

"Voltaire Hiwatari, you're under arrest."

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review! (And don't kill the author! –please?)**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 18: Don't Lose Your Faith (II)

"Yes Grandfather?" Crimson eyes widened at the sight of his grandfather standing in the doorway of his bedroom. There was a small, slightly evil smirk adorning the elder man's features and the child looked up to see a middle sized box in his grandfather's right hand.

"A present? For me?" he said, incredulous. He hadn't received any presents from anyone since his Mum and Dad had died. And it wasn't even his birthday…

"Open it, Kai," Voltaire said, handing the package to he boy. His eyes widened with pleasure and started ripping open the blood red wrapping paper. He gasped when he saw inside the box and threw the package away from him, frightened. He looked up at his grandfather with wide, terrified eyes. "Why…?"

**

* * *

**

Finally, the contents of the box are revealed!

**Please leave a review. (And tell me what you think is in the box! The person closest to the right answer will get...something). Lol. **

**-Dancer-**


	19. Don't Lose Your Faith II

**Important note: **The next four chapters will be written in a different format. The first half or so of each chapter will be a glimpse into Kai's past and the second half will be set in present day. Both parts are essential to the plot.

Thanks so much for all the reviews! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I got banned from the Internet lol.

Thanks to all that reviewed:

totally-bobby-dogz - hehe, the box' content is revealed! A warning though: it's icky. Thanks for reviewing.

Demolition-GIRL-33236 - ahh, you find out the answer in this chapter :) Thanks so much for reviewing! Hope you like.

jellybean-kitty - thank you! Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the last!

Rapunzelle - thanks so much for the review! Information is revealed this chapter :)

the Light Shadow - whoa, my very first death threat for this fic! WHOOT! (yes, I know I'm weird) lol. Thanks for the review, hope you like!

x-Black-Dranzer-x - yay! I'm glad that you liked it so much :) Oooh, guesses! Lol, one is close-ish Enjoy, and thanks for reviewing!

FlamingIce94 - you will know more in due time :) Thanks for the review. Enjoy!

grimnessreaper - thanks! Glad you liked. Hmmm...one of your guesses is on the right track. Enjoy!

ForeverFalling86 - thank you so much! Hehe, I _love_ cliffhangers :P Oooh! One of your guesses is _very_ close! ENjoy :)

HimekoSukie - sorry, but I had to make the knife make it into Kai. Essential to the plot, you see :D -evil grin- Thanks! Hope you like the new chapter.

shininglake - thank you! Your guess: not quite, but close! Hope you enjoy the new chapter :) A new kitten!? Cute!! What a cool name, too!

pheonix80 - thanks! Hope you like the new chapter as much as you did the last!

Baroqueangel - teehehe. I had thought about using Brooklyn or Garland, but I don't really like Rei and I knew it would be a complete shock to most people. Thanks so much for the review! Hope you enjoy :)

p power - thanks so much! I'm so glad you liked the chapter that much! Hopefully you like this chapter just as much!

BloodRedViolet - hmmm...you have good ideas :) Thanks for the review! I hope that this chapter meets the standard of the rest :) Enjoy.

Keight Ylonen - hi! Thanks! Teehehe, you know me - so whatever's in the box has to be...guess, lol. Hint: I like gory movies Thanks so much for reviewing! Oh, I replied to your email already...o.o lol. Hope you enjoy!

Pickle Reviver - thanks! I really hope you like the new chapter! :)

american farmer - I updated! YAY! Hehe, you're on the right track :) Oooh, I love gory things! That must've been so cool to study! Hope you enjoy and thanks for the review!

**Woah, 18 reviews. Thanks so much. You guys ROCK!**

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

_**DancerInTheDark101**_

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 18: Don't Lose Your Faith (II)**

"Yes Grandfather?" Crimson eyes widened at the sight of his grandfather standing in the doorway of his bedroom. There was a small, slightly evil smirk adorning the elder man's features and the child looked up to see a middle sized box in his grandfather's right hand.

"A present? For me?" he said, incredulous. He hadn't received any presents from anyone since his Mum and Dad had died. And it wasn't even his birthday…

"Open it, Kai," Voltaire said, handing the package to he boy. His eyes widened with pleasure and started ripping open the blood red wrapping paper. He gasped when he saw inside the box and threw the package away from him, frightened. He looked up at his grandfather with wide, terrified eyes. "Why…?"

His grandfather didn't say a word as the boy scrambled backwards, tears leaking from crimson eyes to trail down a pale face. The sight horrified him and he could feel vomit rising up his throat.

He heaved, trying to rid the picture from his mind. Closing his eyes made everything worse and eventually, his stomach couldn't handle it anymore. Unfortunately, there wasn't much in his stomach to begin with. So instead, dry heaves wracked his small body.

Nearby, the box lay forgotten on the ground, scarlet liquid seeping from the opening.

"You know they loved you so much, Kai," his grandfather's voice reached him through the heaves. The bitter tone made Kai freeze and he looked up at his grandfather with teary eyes. And after so long, he finally let everything go and the tears cascaded down his face, angering his grandfather even more.

The silent sobs escalated into gasps for breath, hiccuping every so often as he tried not to wail. He screwed his eyes shut and clenched his fists as his grandfather stormed over, picking up the box as he did so.

"Insolent fool!" Voltaire screamed and Kai whimpered, shrinking back towards the wall. The box was thrust at him again and he screamed, scrambling away from the 'present.'

"I said that they loved you so much, Kai. Now, why don't you show them that you love them just as much?" An evil smirk decorated the elder Hiwatari's face, as Kai fearfully grabbed the present and fought back the urge to vomit as the scarlet substance covered his small hands.

Crimson eyes peered once again into the box as the young boy hesitantly reached in and pulled out one of the two objects placed inside. Biting his lip to try and not cry, the small boy held in his hand a large, red object made of soft, squishy material. It was about the size of his hand and was covered in the same scarlet liquid that had seeped from the box earlier.

A small, silver plate had been attached to the object and engraved in it was one word:

_Mum._

In his hand, a young Kai held the very essence of his mother. He was holding her love, her life, her soul. In his hand lay the heart of his mother…

"And what about the other, Kai? Don't you love your father?"

Scared, Kai reached in and lifted out an almost replica of his mother's heart. This one was slightly bigger though and instead of 'Mum' engraved on the silver plate, it was 'Dad.'

"W-why?" he whispered, trembling and gazing up at his grandfather with glazed eyes. "Mummy…Daddy…why?"

There was no answer from his grandfather, but moments later, Voltaire's voice boomed loudly in his ear. "Because you have to learn, Kai. Remember that you were the one who killed them! You have to live the rest of you life knowing that your parents are dead because of you. When all the other children play with their Mum and Dad, you will have _no one_. You killed my only child and for that, you will pay dearly!"

Crying, Kai dropped the two organs and scrambled to his feet. Avoiding the fist that came rushing towards his face, he ran.

Barricading himself in his room, a young Kai sat against the opposite wall, shivering as his grandfather pounded relentlessly on the door, screaming obscenities at him. After what seemed an eternity, the pounding stopped and the young boy froze, sniffing.

For hours he sat in the same position, alone and afraid. He had no one…who would want to care and love for someone who had killed their own mother and father? He was a monster…

xXx

"_REI!!"_

Tala couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the long black hair and golden eyes of Rei Kon. His mind slipped into a mode of shock and it took a few seconds before he even thought to check on Kai.

Panic flooding his mind, Tala raced over to where Kai was lying, the knife still imbedded in his chest. The doctor who had been present when the attack occurred was currently checking Kai's stats and calling frantically for other doctors. He was mumbling random scientific words under his breath that Tala couldn't understand.

"Oh my god…" he breathed, unable to fully comprehend what was going on. Vision wavering, the redhead stumbled the last few paces and saw with horror the blood staining the corner of Kai's mouth. He watched, entranced, as the scarlet fluid slowly slipped from the corner of his mouth and trailed down his chin. It left a dark streak that looked familiarly like a tear – a blood red tear.

"We need to stabilise him, stat!" the doctor called out to several other people as they barged through the door. A heart monitor was hooked up and moments later, the frantic _beep, beep, beep_ of Kai's heart rate echoed throughout the room.

Although the room was in complete chaos, Tala found hope at the sound. It meant that the knife had not pierced Kai's heart. He still had a chance…

Yet the head doctor's next words completely evaporated the hope that had settled only moments before.

"It's hit a lung! He's gonna drown in his own blood if we don't get him into surgery ASAP!"

Hit a lung…? No…

The fact that the knife had missed Kai's heart was a good thing. However, the knife had been confirmed as puncturing one of his lungs and now his best friend was drowning in his own blood…

A rough cough erupted from Kai's still form and Tala jumped, not expecting the movement at all. He half expected Kai's crimson orbs to open. Sadly, they did no such thing. Instead, blood spilled from between rapidly blueing lips, making a stark contrast against his almost translucent skin.

More IVs were inserted and different liquids hung from several see-through bags. A blood pressure cuff was attached to Kai's upper arm, whilst someone concentrated on the reading. Another doctor was lifting his eyelids, checking for any kind of response. While he was doing so, a female doctor pricked a needle into the bottom of the bluenette's right foot.

"We got reaction to pain!" the doctor monitoring Kai's eyes stated, a smile decorating his features.

Literally seconds later, a loud whine filled the room and all heads whipped round to stare at the screen which several green blips had been reduced to a single, flat line. Everyone stood in shocked silence, letting the siren continue to wail for a few more seconds before racing into action.

Tala could only watch, helpless, as they frantically tried to resuscitate his best friend. He didn't even hear the footsteps of Tyson and Spencer as they sprinted into the room, mouths gaping wide open. Tala's legs gave way and he slid down the wall to sit with his back against it. He held his head with his hands, hiding his face from view as a single tear rolled down his cheek.

xXx

"Voltaire Hiwatari, you're under arrest."

Voltaire stared at the man incredulously. There was a badge being shoved in his face before he knew what was happening and then a pair of handcuffs was slapped onto his left wrist.

"I demand to know what is going on!" the elder Hiwatari yelled, angered greatly. He scowled as his other arm was twisted behind him and cuffed. With a quiet _snick_ the handcuffs were pulled tight and locked shut and when he tried to move his arms, Voltaire found that the cuffs were just a little too tight.

Glaring at Captain Luxford, Voltaire fought off the two other policemen who were trying to drag him to the police car waiting in the driveway. But no matter how much he struggled, the man found that he just couldn't get loose of their grip.

Once safely in the car, Voltaire sat silently and glared at the men who had joined him in the car. He opened his mouth to speak, when Captain Luxford beat him to it.

"I suppose you would like to know why exactly you've been arrested Mr. Hiwatari?" he said, voice clipped with anger.

"I _demand_ to know!" Voltaire screeched, cold eyes flaming with intent to harm.

Karl Luxford smirked. He couldn't wait to get Voltaire Hiwatari to court. It was going to be the most fun he had witnessed in a long time, especially considering they also had one Boris Balkov in custody as well. "You're under arrest for several counts of child abuse, intent to harm, intent to kill and murder. You're going to be put away for a very long time, Mr. Hiwatari." The last two words had been spoken with a sneer and Voltaire growled lowly.

As the car pulled away from the Hiwatari mansion, Voltaire let a malicious smirk decorate his lips. Even he was to go to prison, his grandson wouldn't be among the living any more, so really…it didn't matter.

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 19: Share Another Night, With Me (II)

"_At first it was only a few light hits, slaps and the occasional kick. It was only if I ever did something really bad, but as time wore on, he got rougher. After a few months, the slightest thing done wrong and I was punished…"_

"I didn't do anything wrong, Grandpa!" a young boy screamed as the other occupant of the room stormed over, dark eyes flashing with anger. A large hand was flung out to the side and came crashing into the young boy's cheek with such force that he was flung across the room. A single cry echoed as the boy skidded on the wooden flooring and slammed into the nearby wall.

**Thanks so much for taking the time to read! I hoped you all enjoyed :)**

**Next chapter will be up soon!**

**Oh, I also have a new fic up :) It's called Secret Weapon and here is the summary and a snippet of the first chapter.**

**Summary: Working for Japan's Special Forces, Kai Hiwatari loves the adrenaline rush his job gives him. But after an injury forces him to leave, he is given one last hope. His decision makes him Japan's most lethal secret weapon. AU**

Darkness filled the corridor as the three shadowed figures crept into the impending void of black. Guns were trained in front of their bodies, sweeping side to side in case of an ambush. The three were tense, adrenaline running through their bodies as they stalked a supposed invisible enemy.

One cocked his head to the side, signalling that here had been movement down the darkened hallway to their left. The lead man quickly shuffled in front of the others, his gun ready to fire if needed. A quick search through the darkness showed no other presence.

Sighing quietly, the leader signalled with a hand sign to follow him and the trio continued through the main hall, eyes continuously alert and watching for any sign of their enemy.

The three men were dressed the same. All in black, their gear consisted of a bulky jacket with several pockets housing different weapons and objects. Over the jacket was a black bulletproof vest. Black cargo pants covered the lower half of their bodies and what was in the pockets was a mystery. Completing the ensemble was a pair of dark steel-toed combat boots. They all also wore black helmets and identical night vision glasses, letting them to see through the void of darkness in front of them.

"Hurry up," one of them whispered, flicking his hand in a motion for them to go ahead of him. As his comrades crept on before him, he stayed behind, searching the area through the green haze the night vision glasses provided.

To his right, a closed door caught his attention. Eyes narrowing behind the glasses, he stepped forward and placed a gloved hand on the doorhandle. Hesitating slightly, the armed man fought with himself whether to take the risk of opening the door when it could easily be rigged with explosives.

Pushing the doubts aside, he quickly flicked the handle down and stepped inside, his gun at the ready. Inside, the room was bathed in darkness and although his glasses rid the problem of the black void, as he looked around, he couldn't see anything. The room was completely empty.

**Please go and have a read if it interests you!**

**Thanks**

**-Dancer-**


	20. Share Another Night, With Me II

Hi there! Yes, it is I, DancerInTheDark101…back from the dead. Lol, nah I wasn't dead. Sorry for taking so long to update, but life kinda came up behind me and clobbered me on the head. I've been extremely busy with work and all my friendships seem to be falling down the drain.

My best friend and I are no longer best friends (we haven't said a word to each other in almost two months and it's cuz of her fucked up boyfriend!) one of my best guy friends asked me out and now we're not really talking cuz I said no…and all my other mates (apart from a few) keep ditching me.

On the bright side: we got a new dog! So now we have a purebred Border Collie called Jasper and now have a Black Labrador/Golden Retriever cross called Bella. They're both so cute!

Anyways, I hope you all like the chapter :) My Supernatural obsession kinda took me away from the fandom for a while, but I'm slowly going back little at a time :)

**Thanks for the 19 reviews!!! You guys ROCK!!!**

**Important note: **The next three chapters will be written in a different format. The first half or so of each chapter will be a glimpse into Kai's past and the second half will be set in present day. Both parts are essential to the plot.

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**DancerInTheDark101**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**

* * *

**

Chapter 19: Share Another Night, With Me (II)

_"At first it was only a few light hits, slaps and the occasional kick. It was only if I ever did something really bad, but as time wore on, he got rougher. After a few months, the slightest thing done wrong and I was punished…"_

"I didn't do anything wrong, Grandpa!" a young boy screamed as the other occupant of the room stormed over, dark eyes flashing with anger. A large hand was flung out to the side and came crashing into the young boy's cheek with such force that he was flung across the room. A single cry echoed as the boy skidded on the wooden flooring and slammed into the nearby wall.

The blood from the cut on his cheek mingled with the tears falling from large, crimson eyes and fell in a single line to drop to the floor. Kai struggled upright, placing a hand against the wall to help him stand. Staring straight ahead, his vision blurry, he didn't even see his grandfather until it was too late.

A rough hand grabbed at his throat, effectively cutting off his airway. Little by little, Kai was lifted off the ground until his bare feet were ten centimetres above the floor. Unable to draw much breath, the young boy flailed in the grip, throwing his arms in every direction and hoping to hit the man holding him.

Then, just as the black spots decorating his vision started to merge together to become one large black void, the hand let go and he dropped to floor. Landing in a crumpled heap, Kai gulped in huge gasps of air. The precious oxygen flowed into his starved lungs as he cried, unable to stop the unwanted emotions from flowing through.

"Stop it!" Voltaire's gruff voice commanded, his cold eyes glaring down at the small boy. Kai looked up at his grandfather's words, blinking hard to obey him. The tears stopped running almost immediately and Kai felt a rush of relief wash through him.

Still gulping in huge lung fulls of air, the small boy slowly folded himself off the ground to a standing position. He wavered slightly, his knees threatening to buckle and send him tumbling to the ground again.

Defying the odds, Kai remained standing and stared into Voltaire's cold eyes. In a heartbreaking, child's voice, he whispered to his grandpa. "I didn't do anything wrong…"

When nothing happened for a few seconds, Kai let a little happiness seep into his mind. But as usual, he did it too soon. Just as he thought he might be okay, his grandpa lost it.

"You ungrateful, spoiled, bratty imbecile!" Voltaire shouted, throwing out a hand to smack him. Kai screamed and dropped to the floor, avoiding the hit. He did not however miss the kick aimed at his ribs and when he heard a loud crack fill the room, he whimpered. Pain assaulted his torso, making the dreaded tears return in full force.

As the blows continued to rain down on his frail body, Kai wondered why his grandpa was so mad. He hadn't done anything wrong, had he? His few friends did it all the time. Did that mean that their grandpa's hit them too? Just as unconsciousness started to rear it's beautiful head, the young blue-haired boy struggled to understand why his grandpa was so angry with him.

_All I did was find a photo of Mummy and Daddy and look at it…_

XxX

Tala stared at the single flat line glowing an eerie green on the black screen as the doctors and nurses raced around, desperately trying to save his best friend's life. The tears continued to fall, carving trails of anguish and fear down pale cheeks. Tala didn't even notice when Spencer put a hand on his shoulder. All he could see was the single flat line as he willed it to start rising and falling again.

When nothing happened, Tala couldn't handle it anymore. He ran.

Racing past his friend, Tala knocked an unsuspecting Tyson to the floor in a spectacular crash of metal and surgical instruments. Tyson yelled in pain as the metal trolley crashed on top of him, but Tala paid no heed to the teen. He sprinted past surprised nurses and patients, not exactly knowing where he was going.

After what seemed an eternity, Tala flung open the front doors and was catapulted into a world of darkness. While the hospital had been fairly well lit at such a late time, the outside world was most definitely not. Several street lamps lit up small parts of the car park, but apart from that, it was complete darkness.

Tala gasped as his lungs demanded air. A low moan escaped his lips as he took in the night sky. He couldn't handle this. Why was all of this happening? Kai was supposed to be fine, not dead in the hospital. Everyone was supposed to be okay…

"Kai…" he whispered, wondering if his best friend really was dead or not. The single green line flashed into his mind once again and he let the tears fall. This time in his life…it sucked…he just wanted it to end.

"Oh god, Kai…" Then it hit him. What if Kai did die? What if he died alone without his best friend there with him? Oh god, he had abandoned his best friend when he needed him the most. What kind of friend was he?

Ignoring the waves of fatigue, Tala ran back through the main doors, ignored calls from doctors for him to slow down, and weaved his way through the white halls to Kai's room. When he arrived back, the first person he saw was Tyson.

The navy-haired teen was standing in the doorway, mouth open in shock, tears falling from his blue eyes. Slowing drastically, Tala walked up beside Tyson to peer into the room and to his complete disarray, found that the doctors were still trying to resuscitate Kai.

"No…" he moaned, garnering a look of shock in his direction from Tyson and Spencer.

From his position in the doorway, all Tala could see of his friend among the mass of doctors was his slate and blue hair on the stark white pillow. Complex medical words and orders were being thrown between the doctors, making the situation seem all the more surreal.

Even though they were all speaking the same language, Tala couldn't understand a thing they were saying. It all arrived at his brain in a muddle, making the headache starting to pound at his temples even worse.

Moving past the doorway and into the room, Tala found he could see more of what was happening. The amount of tubing that had been inserted into Kai in the mere minutes he was away was astounding. The breathing tube snaked its way through his mouth and down his throat, but several other needles were inserted into his flesh, giving Kai god knows what medicine.

Doctors had pulled out the knife and were struggling to stop the deep red blood from pouring out of the wound. Tala gagged at the almost black liquid flowing from the hole in Kai's chest. His friend's life was slowly dwindling away as more and more of the substance was drained from his body. Why wasn't it stopping?

"We need to get him to an operating room, now!" one of the doctors called out. Tala was in agreement with that doctor, not understanding why it hadn't been done already. The next words spoken made his blood freeze cold.

"He'll die on the way there! We have to fix the kid here. He won't make it to an OR!"

_No…no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!_

With those words said, the doctors resumed their frantic pace, all amidst the blaring wails of the machine monitoring Kai's heartbeat. It was still one shrill tone after ten minutes…

* * *

…**TBC…**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 20: **When You're Sad And No One Knows It (II)**

(I'll Send You Black Roses)

Rei ran. He didn't stop to catch his breath until he was at least half an hour away from the hospital. Pulling out a cell phone from his back pocket, the dark-haired teen dialled a number, pressing the phone to his ear as it rang.

He frowned when the phone went straight to voicemail. He wasn't supposed to have his phone turned off. That was what they had agreed on. Something wasn't right. A hundred and one scenarios raced through Rei's head as he stood on the bank of a river, watching the dark water swirl around in a deadly dance.

They teen had most likely killed one of the best bladers to ever walk the earth. He had most likely killed one of his 'former' friends. He had most likely killed the wrong person…

**Once again, I'm so sorry about the long wait! I don't know when the new chapter will be up. Hopefully before two months…Also, sorry about the length of the chapter. I promise the next one will be longer. **

**Catch ya laters! (Oh, please leave a review :) They make me happy)**

**-Dancer-**


	21. When You're Sad And No One Knows It II

Hi there everyone! I hope that this chapter came out quick enough :) On a sadder note – this fic only has two chapters plus an epilogue to go! It will be sad to finally finish TBR, but there _will _be a sequel. I have already decided on a title and plot and hopefully you will all stick around to read it!

Thanks so much for all the wonderful reviews. I wasn't certain about how the response would be considering the long break between updates, but you all proved my fears wrong. Thanks for all the support. It really means a lot.

A massive thanks to: ForeverFalling86, the Light Shadow, Taijiya Mizu, Demolition-GIRL-33236, CleverPhoenix, Rapunzelle, x-Black-Dranzer-x, black angel falling, phoenix80, totally-bobby-dogz, american farmer & The keeper of lone wolfs.

I am looking for a beta for the sequel to Ten Black Roses. Anyone interested, leave a note in a review or PM and I'll get back to you :)

Anyways, I hope you all enjoy the chapter!

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

**DancerInTheDark101**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**Chapter 20: When You're Sad And No One Knows It (II)**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

Rei ran. He didn't stop to catch his breath until he was at least half an hour away from the hospital. Pulling out a cell phone from his back pocket, the dark-haired teen dialled a number, pressing the phone to his ear as it rang.

He frowned when the phone went straight to voicemail. He wasn't supposed to have his phone turned off. That was what they had agreed on. Something wasn't right. A hundred and one scenarios raced through Rei's head as he stood on the bank of a river, watching the dark water swirl around in a deadly dance.

The teen had most likely killed one of the best bladers to ever walk the earth. He had most likely killed one of his 'former' friends. He had most likely killed the wrong person…

XxX

_Some hours earlier_

Voltaire Hiwatari glared at the policemen standing outside his cell in the local police station. They had read him some bullshit about abusive actions towards a minor and shoved him in the cell and slammed the barred door shut. That had been hours ago and he was starting to get severely annoyed. Who the hell had the right to lock him up in the first place? Nothing had been officially charged against him and there was no way Kai would ever speak up against him – not when he wasn't alive to tell the tale…

However, it seemed his waiting had paid off when a heavy-armed policeman held out a set of keys and unlocked the cell door. "Mr. Hiwatari, you are to come with me," he spoke in a gruff, official voice. Voltaire smirked at the tone, knowing full well that the policeman was barely out of his teens. He was a rookie pretending to be some tough cop. And he could see right through it.

Standing stiffly, Voltaire followed the rookie cop through the darkened hallways to a brightly lit interrogation room. He winced slightly at the change in lighting and as his eyes grew accustomed to the artificial lighting, he scoped out the room.

The room was very blandly decorated. Cream walls, linoleum flooring, a single light dangling from the ceiling. Directly below the light was a metal table bolted to the floor. A chair made of the same materials was also bolted to the floor beside the table. A large, glass window occupied the space on the far right wall and Voltaire let a smirk distort his face. It was obviously two-way glass.

Inside the room were three other people besides himself and the rookie cop. They were all men and Voltaire had a suspicion that they were all very high-ranking officers. The tallest of the three – standing at least 6`4 – had grey/blue eyes that honed in on him immediately. Watching, Voltaire smirked at the look of disgust that ran across the man's face. He knew what he had been brought in for. _Apparently _they had laid charges against him for chid abuse and murder. Voltaire scoffed at the thought.

They weren't going to prove anything by locking him up in a two-bit police station with _claims_ of things. Even if he was proven guilty and was sent to prison, it was no skin off his back. He knew people who would help him out. Did they really think that he wouldn't? He was Voltaire Hiwatari, CEO of the BIOVOLT Corporation, one of the largest independent companies in the world.

The rookie led him over to the metal chair and urged him to a seated position. Understanding, Voltaire sat on the cold chair and didn't even flinch as the handcuffs were released with a quiet snick. Once undone, the cop quickly snapped the free end to a circular rung on the edge of the table. Now, he couldn't go anywhere.

Voltaire faced the policemen, letting a malicious smirk possess his lips. He caught the quick look of fear passing over their faces before it was hidden behind the masks of indifference. And with the first 'silent' introductions over, the interrogation began.

XxX

Head pounding, Tala was forced out of the room as the doctors and nurses struggled to make do with what equipment they had. The last ten minutes had been the worst of his life. Watching the doctors frantically work on getting Kai's heart beating again, amidst the high-pitched shrill tone informing them that they were failing. Both Tyson and Spencer were beside him, their expressions grim at the sounds coming from inside the room. So out of it, Tala didn't see the twin looks of hopelessness and grief pass between the two boys.

Sliding into a nearby chair, Tala let his head fall forward, catching it with his hands as his fingertips buried themselves in his red hair. Letting out a low sob, the distraught boy struggled to deal with the emotions swirling through his mind. While part of heart only held hope for Kai's survival, it seemed that the remaining ninety percent could only see the ordeal ending in another funeral.

His thoughts kept slipping back to the ten minutes of shrill beeping. The ten minutes when Kai's heart had been still, no longer able to pump blood through his weakened body. No breath had left his lungs, the machines having to do the work for him. And when they had been ushered out of the room…_Oh god, I have to get back in there. He can't die alone!_

A sudden gasp ripped from his mouth and Tala sat up straight, blue eyes widening in horror at his thoughts. Shaking his head violently, Tala tried to rid the thoughts of his best friend's death out of his mind. But no matter how much he willed the thoughts away, they just wouldn't leave.

"… Tala?" a tentative voice asked, breaking his silent battle. Tala looked up from staring at his pale hands to see Spencer and Tyson standing over him, concern written across their faces. His mouth dropped open a little as he struggled to find something to say. Instead of any words leaving his lips, a single crystalline tear fell from a blue eye to trail down a defined cheekbone and drop off his chin to land on the floor with a quiet splash.

Nothing was said as Tala let the tears flow. He had tried so hard to be strong, be the person everyone expected him to be. Yeah, sure, he wasn't as emotional as any other person, but he did have a breaking point. And that breaking point had just been hit.

Losing Bryan had been hard, harder than he had originally thought. The boy had been one of his closest friends and had been with him through all the bad times, and the good. But when Bryan passed, Tala had still had Kai. Kai was his best friend, the person he trusted the most in the world.

When the abuse had finally become knowledge, Tala had felt sick. Knowing that his best friend had been through the horror for most of his life had made him sick to his stomach. The fact that Kai had hidden it hadn't made the situation any better. But what made the whole thing the worst wasn't the fact that Kai had gone through it alone, or that it had happened at all, but the fact that it had been his grandfather – his _family_, that had done such a horrible thing to him.

"Hey, Tala. Come on, man…" Spencer whispered. Tala heard the words, but didn't comprehend them fully. It was only when a hand was placed on his shoulder did he realize that his friend was trying to tell him something.

Blinking slowly to rid the haze covering his mind, Tala spoke. "Yeah?" His voice was quiet, filled with grief and resignation. To his own ears, he sounded pathetic and broken. He was broken…

Spencer pulled him to his feet and Tala let the taller boy steer him over to where the small window looking into Kai's room was situated. Taking a quick glance inside, Tala didn't really notice anything until he looked again.

Eyes wide and mouth open, Tala stared at the largely diminished movements of the personnel inside the room. Most of them were standing still, staring at the prone form on the bed, who was still covered in the red liquid that had spilled from his body. One of the nurses had lifted her hand to cover her mouth, silently gasping at the sight.

Unable to bear it any longer, Tala rushed from the window and pushed the door open with a loud bang. All of the doctors and nurses turned at the startling sound, surprise flitting across their features. Ignoring them, Tala slowly – if a little hesitantly – over to where Kai was lying.

Kai's slack features were pale, frighteningly so. The twin cobalt blue tattoos on his cheekbones stood in stark contrast to the ashen tone of his skin. Dark lashes that normally parted to reveal unearthly crimson orbs were closed, brushing against the top of his cheeks. The teen's slate bangs were dishevelled and fell across his forehead in an array of blue and grey strands. A single smear of dark blood crossed Kai's face; the single imperfection on a face many said was beautiful, beautiful but haunted.

Reaching out and grabbing his friend's limp hand; the redhead gripped his fingers in a tight grasp. Looking over to the many machines that were attached to the blue-haired boy, Tala let a tearful smile grace his lips. The black screen with the green line was flat no more. Regular blips of green rocketed upwards in a steady rhythm. Kai's heart was beating again.

Glancing back to Kai's face, Tala finally took in the tubes and machines keeping his friend alive. A clear tube ran down his throat, giving the weakened boy much-needed oxygen. The tube was attached to a machine that hissed with each inhale and exhale. Kai was on a ventilator.

Another machine was placed more or so next to Kai's chest, with small wires protruding from the main compartment. The small wires were attached to the unconscious teen's chest, monitoring the rhythm of his heartbeat.

Those were the only machines that Tala knew. The rest of them were foreign, doing a job of which Tala had no idea. But at the current moment, Tala didn't care. Kai was breathing; his heart was still beating. He was _alive. _

XxX

Rei stared up at the black sky, obscured by silently moving clouds that added a tinge of grey to the night. He sat under a large tree of some kind, thinking. His actions some hours before were going to have dire consequences, of that much he knew. Attempted murder was not something that was taken lightly in society. He just hoped that he could disappear before anybody came looking for him. He didn't know where he would go, or when he would go.

He had _killed_ one of his closet friends.

_Oh god. What have I done? What has Kai ever done to me? Shit…_

It was then that _his _voice popped into his mind. The words _he_ had spoken. The truth. Rei felt the worry dissolve in an instant. He had done the right thing. It was all part of the plan. In the end, everything was going to be fine. _He_ had the utmost faith in him. And Rei was going to make damn sure that he fulfilled his part of the plan.

* * *

… **TBC …**

**Please review!**

* * *

**Preview: Chapter 21: When Your Heart's Dark And Frozen (II)**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

_"And in other news, the CEO of the major company BIOVOLT Corporation, Voltaire Hiwatari, has been arrested on undisclosed charges. As we were unable to find out what the charges laid were, several rumours have been spreading the upscale social network. Most of them involve the CEO's grandson, high school teenager Kai Hiwatari. We will let you know more on the matter as it is revealed. Tony Hamilton, reporting."_

Tala switched off the television before glancing at Kai's slumbering form. Sighing, the redhead rubbed his sore neck from sleeping in the not-so-comfortable chair all night. So the media were latching onto the latest gossip. It had been news to him, hearing that Voltaire had been arrested. He was beyond happy that the monster was finally getting what he deserved. But the happiness was overshadowed by Kai's condition.

The boy had still not awoken after the hurried surgery. His condition hadn't improved any, but it hadn't deteriorated either, which was a good thing.

However, the fact that the police still hadn't found Rei Kon was beginning to worry Tala greatly. The boy had stabbed his best friend in the chest, missing his heart by _millimetres. _Kai was extremely lucky to be alive and Tala didn't want Rei to come back and finish the job he failed to complete.

For now, it was all just one big waiting game. And Tala _hated_ playing games.

* * *

**Well, that's one more chapter down! Please leave a review and tell me what you thought of the chapter. Oh, and I would really appreciate it if you could tell me what you think of my writing as well? Have I improved since the beginning of the fic? Gotten worse? Improvements that I could make**

**You guys have been an awesome group. I hope you keep reading :)**

**See you all next chapter!**

**-Dancer-**

* * *


	22. When Your Heart's Dark and Frozen II

**GASP. She's alive! Yes, I know it has been forever since I've updated. I'm very sorry for the wait, especially so close to the end of the fic. As it is, there is this chapter and then the epilogue and then Ten Black Roses is over. But have no fear, for there is a SEQUEL! (Excuse the pun…--Ten Black Roses is a song by the Rasmus, as is the title of the sequel. Also _No Fear_ is a song also by the band………lol)**

**Once again, I am terribly sorry for the long wait! I hope you can all forgive me??? I hope you all enjoy the latest chapter of Ten Black Roses!**

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! Your comments mean the world to me. **

**ENJOY XD**

**

* * *

**

TEN BLACK ROSES

_**DancerInTheDark101**_

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or the song and lyrics to _Ten Black Roses_ or the band _The Rasmus _(although I do own all of _The Rasmus'_ albums!). Oh, but I do own the plot.

Summary: When Kai's friends start to suspect something isn't quite right at home, they pry into the matter. What they find shocks and horrifies them, but does it explain the constant bruising and bandages? What is Kai hiding so desperately? Abuse, dark themes

**

* * *

**

Chapter 21:

**When Your Heart's Dark And Frozen (II)**

**(I'll Send You Black Roses)**

_"And in other news, the CEO of the major company BIOVOLT Corporation, Voltaire Hiwatari, has been arrested on undisclosed charges. As we were unable to find out what the charges laid were, several rumours have been spreading the upscale social network. Most of them involve the CEO's grandson, high school teenager Kai Hiwatari. We will let you know more on the matter as it is revealed. Tony Hamilton, reporting."_

Tala switched off the television before glancing at Kai's slumbering form. Sighing, the redhead rubbed his sore neck from sleeping in the not-so-comfortable chair all night. So the media were latching onto the latest gossip. It had been news to him, hearing that Voltaire had been arrested. He was beyond happy that the monster was finally getting what he deserved. But the happiness was overshadowed by Kai's condition.

The boy had still not awoken after the hurried surgery. His condition hadn't improved any, but it hadn't deteriorated either, which was a good thing.

However, the fact that the police still hadn't found Rei Kon was beginning to worry Tala greatly. The boy had stabbed his best friend in the chest, missing his heart by _millimetres. _Kai was extremely lucky to be alive and Tala didn't want Rei to come back and finish the job he failed to complete.

For now, it was all just one big waiting game. And Tala _hated_ playing games.

Spencer sat beside him, fast asleep in what looked like an equally uncomfortable hospital chair. His short blonde hair was covered by a blue beanie, trying to keep some warmth in his body on the cold, chilly night. Face pale; the elder boy's mouth was open slightly, snoring softly in his sleep. Tala let a smile slip onto his features as he glanced at his friend, a smile that disappeared instantly when his gaze reached Kai.

The bluenette was frighteningly pale, the cobalt blue tattoos contrasting starkly with the pallid skin. The several machines helping the boy stay alive hissed and beeped in random sequence, creating a symphony of sounds that Tala never wanted to hear again in his life.

A few intravenous lines snaked their way into the back of his left hand and the crook of his elbow. One was connected to a bag full of clear liquid that was most probably a medical cocktail of painkillers, sedatives and antibiotics. The other tube that ran into his elbow was a deep red in colour. Blood, replacing the needed substance that had been lost when the knife was plunged into his chest.

There was no oxygen mask; instead a clear tube was threaded into Kai's open mouth, held in place with special equipment. That tube went down his throat and directly into his lungs, pushing air into and out of his lungs, forcing them to work while his body rested and healed.

Apparently, Kai's lungs hadn't been damaged in the attack, which had startled Tala. He didn't understand why the ventilator was needed. One of the doctors had explained that the ventilator was there to help keep the strain off Kai as his body healed. Just after the knife had sliced into his chest, his body had gone into shock. Having the vent regulate his breathing, his body was able to concentrate on healing the areas that needed it, not concentrating on keeping the lungs working.

Of course there was a downside to having the vent. When it was finally time to get rid of the damn thing, Kai would have to be gradually taken off it as if it was just yanked out in one go, his lungs wouldn't know quite what to do as they hadn't needed to do anything for some time, and in the end, they wouldn't work.

So as a result, having the ventilator meant a longer hospital visit, but Tala didn't care. Kai was _alive_. That was all that mattered.

The redhead tore his eyes from the prone form of his friend as Spencer groaned and shifted in the seat, blue eyes flickering before opening half way. "Wha?" came the unintelligent mumble from the blonde as he woke a little more. "Kai?"

"He's doing okay. Well, as 'okay' as he can get at the moment," Tala stated, his eyes drifting back over to where Kai lay. It was going to be a long road to recovery for the teen. Tala was pretty sure that physiotherapy would be needed to some degree as well many, many hours of therapy to help with whatever they decided to diagnose the boy with. The redhead already knew that his friend suffered from some kind of depression and anxiety – all stemming from the long, hard years of abuse.

Abuse. It was a topic that Tala still couldn't think about without guilt invading his consciousness. Kai had gone through so much, alone. He was his best friend, and even he couldn't see the things that had gone on behind closed doors. Some kind of friend he was.

Groaning, the Russian teen shook his head, trying desperately to change his train of thought. Self-pity wasn't going to get Kai better; it wasn't going to get Voltaire tried guilty for abuse and many other heinous crimes; it wasn't going to catch Rei Kon. All it was going to do was send him into a pit of depression.

"I saw the news earlier, Spence."

"What happened?" Spencer asked warily.

Tala sighed, trying to hide the small smile that was threatening to slip out. "It turns out that Voltaire has been arrested…" He watched as Spencer's eyes went wide, mouth dropping open.

"A-are you sure?""

"Yeah. I'm positive. No one knows why he was arrested though and rumours have been going around that it has something to do with Kai. I think that if this gets out, Voltaire will be ruined. I hope that sadistic son of a bitch gets the death sentence."

Venom laced the words of the last sentence spoken and Tala had a hard time keeping his anger in check. Just thinking about the man had spiked his rage and now he felt the need to deck someone – namely Voltaire Hiwatari. Give him the chance, and he would. That was a promise.

A sick grin twisted his face as Tala saw in his minds eye the punch that would inevitably knock Voltaire to the ground. The redhead was going make sure that he was at the trial – he knew it would come to that. He was going to deck the bastard in front of everyone. Revenge would be sweet.

Ideally, Tala would love to torture the bastard for weeks on end, but he figured it wouldn't be very appropriate and would most probably end up in jail (or worse) himself. Now, if Bryan had been alive…

_Bryan plus flamethrower plus Voltaire equals…_

The answer to the equation: Revenge would be even sweeter.

Just as the image of Bryan torching Voltaire with his prized flamethrower entered his head, the door was swung open and in walked two of Kai's doctors, three policemen in tow. Tala froze, wondering what was going to happen next. The conversation between the five men stopped short as they caught sight of him and Spencer and Tala wondered what they had been talking about.

"Mr. Ivanov? Mr. Petrov?"

Tala nodded, wondering how the hell the man knew their names. Then it dawned on him. The doctors. Duh. "What do you want, officers?" he asked, unconsciously moving toward Kai as he spoke.

"My name is Captain Karl Luxford," one of the policemen spoke. "I was the one who arrested Mr. Hiwatari."

Tala felt his mouth drop open slightly. _This_ was the guy who arrested Voltaire? "I repeat; what you want?" he repeated, still moving closer to Kai, Spencer mirroring his actions.

"This wont be easy, but we need you two to take a statement regarding Mr. Hiwatari's treatment of his grandson." Tala closed his eyes, knowing full well that he wouldn't be able to get out of it. He would probably hear things he never wanted to hear and learn things he never wanted to learn. But… but if it helped put Voltaire behind bars…

Sharing a look with Spencer, the redhead nodded at the policemen. "When?" he asked. He didn't want to leave Kai's side yet as the boy was still in a critical condition. That was when something occurred to him. If Kai was in such a critical condition, why was he allowed visitors?

Filing away the thought to be asked at a later date, Tala looked to the police officers for an answer to his question. Seeing the looks on their faces, he knew immediately that the statement was going to have to be taken as soon as possible. Hesitant, the redhead glanced over to where Kai was still lying, unconscious. Obviously the policemen had some kind of heart as he saw their expressionless faces morph into some kind of remorse/sympathy.

"I'm sorry, boys, but you're going to have to come with us, now. I'm sure that the doctors are taking very good care of your friend, but this is important and we need your help. It won't be for too long and if anything happens we'll give the doctors a number they can contact you with."

Tala was shocked. The police were actually being _nice_? Since when had they done all of this kind of stuff just to help an investigation? Then it clicked. Once the right information was leaked to media, the media would go nuts. The trial would be a high-profile case that would probably last for months and months. BIOVOLT would be unearthed and the world would know what Voltaire had done to Kai.

There was one problem though. Even though there was substantial evidence pointing to Voltaire exclaiming the GUILTY verdict, they had to be thorough. If there was one fact wrong…the whole thing could be over and Voltaire could walk free. And then there was still the missing Rei Kon.

"Okay." He nodded as he spoke the word, before walking over to Kai and grabbing his right hand, the one without the IV and gripped it tight. "Hey," he whispered to his friend. "You better hold on. Spence and me, we're gonna go fight for you, 'kay? We're gonna put that motherfucker behind bars make sure he never sees the light of day again."

_Please hold on, Kai._

With those last words spoken, Tala followed the policemen out of the hospital room, Spencer beside him. They were going to fight.

* * *

Back inside the hospital room, a shimmering form appeared beside the bed, pale eyes staring down at the prone figure. Lilac hair fell into half-open eyes as Bryan Kuznetsov watched over his injured, but healing, friend. He had watched Tala and Spencer leave with the police, desperately hoping that they would be able to help put Voltaire behind bars.

Soon, the world would know what a bastard Voltaire Hiwatari was. They would know just how heartless the man was and what he had done to his only family. The world would recoil in disgust at one of the most influential people on the planet.

Glancing out the window, Bryan stepped closer to Kai and placed a gossamer hand on his, eyes narrowed threateningly as Rei Kon appeared the tree line outside the hospital. _Tala…Spencer…hurry._

Because, there was nothing he could do against Rei. He was just a spirit, his soul unable to leave the world until he knew that his friends would be okay.

* * *

**… TBC …**

**Please review!**

**

* * *

**

Preview: Chapter 22: Epilogue: Ten Black Roses

Kai Hiwatari groaned as he fought his way from the depths of unconsciousness. He struggled to open his eyes, not having the strength or energy to do so. But after many tries, he managed to pry them open a fraction, wincing as bright light assaulted the crimson orbs. His vision hazy, Kai squinted, trying to block some of the light.

His mind was hazy, unable to process much at all, so he lay where he was, staring at the ceiling of whatever building he was in through blurry eyes. His body was numb. He couldn't move much really, just a few fractions at a time. There was something covering his mouth, uncomfortable, but soothing at the same time.

Hearing a few muffled sounds, he turned his head slowly to the right. That action sapped his strength so much that the room he was in swum in and out of focus – even more so than before. With an exhausted sigh, he slipped back into the darkness.

**

* * *

**

Wow, I've finally finished another chapter! Once again, so sorry for the extremely long wait!!! I know a lot doesn't really happen in this chapter, but I had to re-read through the entire fic before I wrote the chapter so it made sense. Next chapter is the epilogue! –cries-

**Thank you so much everyone, for sticking with me through his fic. It means a lot to me. **

**See you next chapter! (The last…-tear-)**

**-DancerInTheDark101-**


	23. Ten Black Roses EPILOGUE

Two years later I finally post the epilogue. I really hope you like it. Please read the authors note at the end!

* * *

**TEN BLACK ROSES**

_**DancerInTheDark101**_

* * *

**Chapter 22: Epilogue**

**Ten Black Roses**

_Six months later_

Tala looked over at his best friend. It had been a long and arduous road for Kai after he had been released from the hospital some months before hand. Other than the obvious physical wounds, Kai had suffered greatly from the emotional damage that had been inflicted on him by his grandfather. He had been withdrawn, hardly spoke and barely leaving the house. Both Tala and the Bladebreakers had done all they could to try and get Kai out of the slump he had fallen into, but nothing seemed to work.

Until one day several months later. Tala had walked out into the living room and stopped short, his mouth dropping open in shock. Kai was seated in the living room, the TV on and he was watching whatever was playing intently.

It turned out to be news about his grandfather's trial.

Soon after Tala had spoken with the police officer who had arrested Voltaire, the news had been released to the media. Once it had been found that Voltaire Hiwatari had been arrested on several counts of child abuse, neglect of a minor, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder and several counts of first degree murder, the media had begun a crusade to get the truth.

Tala had been only too happy to oblige, but on one condition – Kai was to be left alone. So far, the media had honoured their word and left the crimson-eyed teen alone. Tala didn't know how long that would last after the trial though.

They were currently sitting in a courtroom, watching the proceedings of the final jury's decision. It was obvious Voltaire would be spending the rest of his life in prison, but the jury still hadn't made the final decision yet and then there was the matter of the death sentence or not. Tala hoped like hell he did. As much as life imprisonment was a very good sentence, they'd been through too much and the bastard deserved to die.

"Do you think he'll get it?" Tala asked, once again turning to look at Kai.

Kai's crimson eyes locked with his own icy blue ones. "I fucking hope so," came the low reply. "He deserves to rot in Hell."

"Yeah, I agree."

There were many murmurings of agreement. Besides himself and Kai; Spencer, Tyson and Max were seated in the courtroom. They all wanted to see Voltaire dead just as much as they did.

Rei hadn't been seen since he'd tried to kill Kai all those months before. The police had been on constant alert, searching for the teen, but they hadn't found anything. It was very likely he'd managed to skip country and probably headed back to China. It worried Tala that they hadn't been able to find him, but it wasn't something he was going to dwell on forever. They'd get him someday.

There was a loud clap and Tala was brought back to the present. Looking towards the front of the courtroom, the redhead saw that the judge was standing, hammer poised over the wooden table. He was ready to announce the decision.

He could feel Kai trembling slightly beside him and Tala reached over and pressed a hand to his friend's shoulder. Kai relaxed slightly at the touch.

It was then announced that everyone was to stand. Tala stood, his eyes flickering between his best friend and the judge. Voltaire was brought to the front of the room, hands cuffed with four guards standing around. The elder man looked downright pissed and Tala had to fight to keep a laugh from escaping.

Glancing back over to Kai, Tala saw that his friend was staring at his grandfather, his crimson eyes stormy with rage. His hands were clenching into fists tight enough to make his knuckles white, before unclenching and repeating it all over again.

"Rot in hell you evil bastard…" Kai whispered. Tala smirked at his friend's statement. Oh yeah, Kai was _pissed_.

"The jury has decided," the judge began. "Voltaire Hiwatari you are sentenced to three consecutive life imprisonments at the Bakuten Maximum Security Prison, without the eligibility for parole."

Tala could feel himself burning with anger. That's all he was getting? Three life sentences? What about the fucking death penalty!

"However," the judge spoke up over the increasingly angry roar from those gathered. "You will not be seeing those sentences out as it has been decided that you, Voltaire Hiwatari, have been given the death penalty by lethal injection, to take place on this date in four months time. Dismissed."

Tala couldn't help the elation washing through him. Once again he looked over at Kai and for the first time in years, he saw a genuine smile filtering across the pale teen's face.

It was over. They could finally get on with their lives. It was finally over.

_Four months later_

Kai watched as they strapped his grandfather to the table and inserted the appropriate needles into his arms. A complicated set-up was situated to the left of the table; a box containing three clear cylinders that each contained a different coloured liquid. Kai knew that they would be injected into his grandfather's blood stream soon. They had been carefully measured out in the correct dosages to make it painless, but deadly.

He would just feel like he was falling asleep, only this sleep he'd never wake up from. Sometimes Kai wished that they still used the electric chair, so that his grandfather as much pain inflicted on him as possible before he died.

But he was going to be dead, that was all that mattered.

The Russian teen watched as one of the technicians signalled to another to start the process. Looking on in morbid fascination, Kai saw the first of the cylinders be plunged down, the liquid starting to make its way through the tubing and into Voltaire. Immediately afterwards, the second cylinder emptied, closely followed by the third.

Seconds after the third cocktail of drugs had made its way into Voltaire's system, the elderly man's eyes began to close. Kai watched on as his grandfather's eyes closed for the last and final time.

A technician went over and checked Voltaire's pulse before confirming that he had passed on.

"Time of death: 10.01AM."

Kai couldn't help the wave of relief that washed through him. He turned and looked at his friends gathered around him.

He was free.

It was finally over.

**END.**

* * *

**Okay, there you have it! It's short and not exactly what I had in mind originally, but I finally finished it! Hope you all like the ending.**

**Just wanna say a huge thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favourited or followed this story over the years. I first started this way back when I was still attending college and now almost four years later (and in a completely different country!) I finished it :)**

**I honestly don't think I'll ever come back to the Beyblade fandom, so thank you so much for all your help and support. This fandom is what really got me into writing and you've helped me improve my skills so much.**

**So, THANK YOU.**

**-Rachel**


End file.
